Without a Word: How a Boy's Unspoken Love Changed Everything

by Jill Kelly, Tim McGraw (Foreword by), Faith Hill (Foreword by)

Overview

WITHOUT A WORD is a riveting memoir that blends remarkable achievement with passion, sacrifice, love, pain, and human interest. It takes the reader into the lives of a celebrity couple, Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Kelly, and his wife, Jill, to reveal the Kelly family's private struggle and how seven years with their severely disabled, terminally ill son, Hunter, unfolded in a redemptive and transforming manner. The light of Hunter's love through his brief and silent life shone into the shadowed corners of Jill and Jim's lives resulting in Jill believing that Jesus Christ was authentic, her learning to forgive Jim of past indiscretions, and finally resulting in Jim's seeking and finding God. Lessons gleaned from Hunter's life and death, and Jim and Jill's struggle to save their marriage during tumultuous times, make this a compelling and inspiring read.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780446563383
Publisher:	FaithWords
Publication date:	09/19/2011
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	292,075
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Jill Kelly is the wife of former Buffalo Bills quarterback Jim Kelly. In September 1997, three months after their infant son, Hunter, was diagnosed with a fatal disease called Krabbe Leukodystrophy, Jim and Jill founded the Hunter's Hope Foundation. As chairman of the board of Hunter's Hope, Jill helps children suffering from Leukodystrophy and their families by raising awareness and research funds to fight this devastating disease. She and Jim live in Buffalo, NY, with their two daughters and three dogs. Hunter's Hope Foundation can be found online at http://www.huntershope.org. Half of all royalties will go to the Hunter's Hope Foundation. Jill, along with her two daughters, is also the author of an upcoming FaithWords book, Hot Chocolate with God.

Table of Contents

Foreword Tim McGraw Faith Hill xi

Preface xv

Prologue: Beyond Words 1

Chapter 1 Not What It Seems 5

Chapter 2 Welcome Home 13

Chapter 3 Mr. and Mrs. Quarterback 23

Chapter 4 Broken 33

Chapter 5 Searching for Hope 39

Chapter 6 Change 57

Chapter 7 Hunter and His Sisters 65

Chapter 8 Hunter at One and Two 73

Chapter 9 Hunter at Three and Four 84

Chapter 10 Hunter at Five and Six 93

Chapter 11 Hunter at Seven 105

Chapter 12 Hunter at Eight 115

Chapter 13 August 5, 2005 130

Chapter 14 Memories Everywhere 143

Chapter 15 Unexpected Grace 149

Chapter 16 "My Heart Doesn't Look the Same Anymore" 159

Chapter 17 Walking Through the Valley 169

Chapter 18 I'm Free 179

Chapter 19 Forever 190

Chapter 20 The Time in Between 199

Epilogue: While I Wait 207

Acknowledgments 211

Appendix A Hunter's Hope Foundation 215

Appendix B The Hunter's Hope Kids 221

Appendix C "Team Hunter" Memories 229

Appendix D Hot Chocolate with God 243

Appendix E Jim Kelly's Hall of Fame Induction Speech 248

Notes 253

What People are Saying About This

Brett and Deanna Farve

Jim and Jill must be commended for sharing this heartfelt story. Their bravery and courage is unsurpassable. This book has given us a different view of the Kellys. We always knew them as part of the extended football family, but now we see them as a family with real struggles . . . a family who used their faith in God and their love for one another to press on! We will forever look at them in a different light. The Kellys are amazing parents, but off the football field Hunter was the true warrior!

Chris and Katherine Berman

Jim and Jill Kelly were always headed toward greatness. Who knew that a Hall of Fame career with the Buffalo Bills would be dwarfed by their son, Hunter? This is a story that refuses to detail a sadness that would seem only natural. Instead, it is an uplifting tale of courage, hope, and love. We are proud to call the Kelly family our friends. You will, too!

Dan and Claire Marino

We know through our own experience of having a son with Autism that challenges also present many blessings. We admire the fact that Jim and Jill have been willing to share both their struggles and successes with the world. This story is a tribute to Hunter James Kelly. Hunter's short life transformed the Kelly family, and through the work of Hunter's Hope, the foundation that bears his name, his life will touch countless other families. Reading this book was like watching a miracle unfold.

Editorial Reviews

"I was emotionally drained but inspired when I read Jill's book. God's timing was perfect. This wonderful book helped me to see my own 'trials' in a completely different light."

Denise Jackson

"The story of the Kelly family is painful, but it is not a story of pain. It's a story of redemption, grace, reconciliation, and the powerful activity of the work-all-things-for-good God. I found myself left without a word as I read it—humbled by the courage of Hunter, the love of his sisters, and the indescribable way that God demonstrated His love to Jim and Jill. Their story has served to enflame my faith, and it will yours as well."

Dr. Jerry Gillis

"We know through our own experience of having a son with Autism that challenges also present many blessings. We admire the fact that Jim and Jill have been willing to share both their struggles and successes with the world. This story is a tribute to Hunter James Kelly. Hunter's short life transformed the Kelly family, and through the work of Hunter's Hope, the foundation that bears his name, his life will touch countless other families. Reading this book was like watching a miracle unfold."—Dan and Claire Marino

"Jim and Jill Kelly were always headed toward greatness. Who knew that a Hall of Fame career with the Buffalo Bills would be dwarfed by their son, Hunter? This is a story that refuses to detail a sadness that would seem only natural. Instead, it is an uplifting tale of courage, hope, and love. We are proud to call the Kelly family our friends. You will, too!"—Chris and Katherine Berman

"The story of the Kelly family is painful, but it is not a story of pain. It's a story of redemption, grace, reconciliation, and the powerful activity of the work-all-things-for-good God. I found myself left without a word as I read it—humbled by the courage of Hunter, the love of his sisters, and the indescribable way that God demonstrated His love to Jim and Jill. Their story has served to enflame my faith, and it will yours as well."—Dr. Jerry Gillis, lead pastor, the Chapel at CrossPoint, Buffalo, NY

"I was emotionally drained but inspired when I read Jill's book. God's timing was perfect. This wonderful book helped me to see my own 'trials' in a completely different light."—Denise Jackson, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller, IT'S ALL ABOUT HIM

From the Publisher

"Jim and Jill Kelly were always headed toward greatness. Who knew that a Hall of Fame career with the Buffalo Bills would be dwarfed by their son, Hunter? This is a story that refuses to detail a sadness that would seem only natural. Instead, it is an uplifting tale of courage, hope, and love. We are proud to call the Kelly family our friends. You will, too!"

Chris and Katherine Berman

"We know through our own experience of having a son with Autism that challenges also present many blessings. We admire the fact that Jim and Jill have been willing to share both their struggles and successes with the world. This story is a tribute to Hunter James Kelly. Hunter's short life transformed the Kelly family, and through the work of Hunter's Hope, the foundation that bears his name, his life will touch countless other families. Reading this book was like watching a miracle unfold."

Dan and Claire Marino

Kelly, wife of pro football Hall of Famer Jim Kelly and mom to Hunter, the child on whom her memoir is focused, shares her experience with a candid and genuine spirit. Jill entered the big leagues with Buffalo Bills quarterback Kelly as a naïve young 20-something woman who first became pregnant and then became Mrs. Kelly. The author quite transparently discusses how ill-equipped both she and Jim were for matrimony. When their second child, Hunter, was born with the neurodegenerative disorder Krabbe disease, life turned inside out for them as individuals and as a couple. The text chronicles Hunter's medical journey; his spirit of love overcame countless obstacles while affecting his family's lives, even long after he died. Kelly shares one very public family's journey through grievous suffering and shows how God healed their pain in his own time and way. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

"Jim and Jill must be commended for sharing this heartfelt story. Their bravery and courage is unsurpassable. This book has given us a different view of the Kellys. We always knew them as part of the extended football family, but now we see them as a family with real struggles . . . a family who used their faith in God and their love for one another to press on! We will forever look at them in a different light. The Kellys are amazing parents, but off the football field Hunter was the true warrior!"

Brett and Deanna Farve