Walking Papers
By Francesco Clark

IN A WHEELCHAIR BUT FAR FROM PARALYZED: AN ENTREPRENEUR’S EXTRAORDINARY STORY
Francesco Clark, author of WALKING PAPERS: The Accident That Changed My Life and the Business That Got Me Back on My Feet (Hyperion, June 1, 2010; Hardcover; $23.99)
When he was 24, Francesco Clark took a fateful dive into the shallow end of a pool. Paralyzed from the neck down, doctors announced that Francesco would never move from his bed or breathe without a ventilator. Defying their predictions, within days he was breathing unaided—the start of his miraculous recovery process. His body lost its ability to sweat, leading to painfully dry skin, so Francesco started mixing his own lotions and now runs the award-winning, celebrity darling, upscale skin care line, Clark’s Botanicals. Seven years after his life-changing accident, Francesco runs his own company, continues to work on his own recovery, and gives back by serving as a national ambassador for the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation. He can speak about the mindset that allowed him to turn tragedy into triumph, stem cell research and controversial surgeries and PT methods, and tips for starting a business under difficult circumstances.