Story Never Ends
I received an unexpected call this week from a young man in Chicago. It turns out he is a nephew of late James Lilly, who was the protagonist of a documentary I made many moons ago. After working with James for 9 years, I finished the film called, “Pushin’ Forward,” in 2007 chronicling his life as he pursued his dream of winning the world’s longest wheelchair race in Alaska. James was a former gang member in Chicago, got shot and paralyzed when he was 15 years-old and later became a world-class wheelchair athlete. It was a story about redemption and perseverance. The film ends with the long-coveted victory. James’ life work was to keep sharing his story to inner-city kids to steer them away from bad choices.