Joanne Schrimpf

Having earned a Master’s degree in Education and certified in school nursing, Joanne Schrimpf volunteered as the first swim coach at Oldenburg Academy of the Immaculate Conception. Joanne Schrimpf was a devoted wife and mother with her whole life ahead of her when in the morning hours of February 22, 2002, her life was changed forever by a serious automobile collision. Suffering life-threatening injuries, Joanne Schrimpf recovered from a fractured neck, a torn brain artery, and a seriously injured elbow.

Unfortunately, Joanne Schrimpf also suffered a brain injury that was immediately apparent to the Emergency Medical Technicians and Emergency Room doctors but that eluded her own understanding for more than a year. Suffering feelings of frustration because short-term memory loss interfered with daily life and realizing that she'd never again work as a nurse or a college instructor in education, Joanne Schrimpf received encouragement from her doctor, Thomas Watanabe, to get cognitive treatment. Despite finding comfort in a Cincinnati-based brain injury support group, Joanne Schrimpf also tried her hand as an audiology technician, a move that ultimately convinced her to take her doctor's advice to get cognitive rehabilitation.

Currently receiving cognitive and vocational therapy, Joanne Schrimpf is fully committed to learning a variety of organizational and social techniques designed to improve her daily life. The treatments have made it possible for Joanne Schrimpf to manage church activities, write, organize book signings, and speak publicly about her experiences.