I’m sure we all remember an injury we’ve suffered at some point in our lives, whether it was just rolling an ankle or perhaps even breaking a bone. Even as we age, most of can vividly remember the physical pain. However, that physical pain pales in comparison to the emotional anguish we suffer as parents when one of our children goes down.

On February 25th, 2011, my daughter Katie, a sophomore basketball player at Thomas More College, was injured in the PAC League Championship game. I remember it like it was yesterday. On what looked like a routine move to the basket, at least from where we were sitting, we heard the whistle stopping the play, and the next thing we saw was Katie on the floor, writhing in pain, and holding her knee. For a few brief seconds, the sudden sound of silence in the gym was deafening. Then reality struck.

To see the look of pain, disappointment, and frustration on Katie’s face as my wife and I walked down onto the court was a feeling I’ll never forget. It was agonizing. As much physical pain as I’ve experienced with injuries over my years of playing, nothing hurt worse than what I felt that night.

All she had worked for was over. We knew almost immediately, even before the team doctor told us, what had happened. She had torn her ACL and what should have been the most fun for an athlete—the NCAA tournament starting that next week—was over for Katie. She would now be relegated to the role of cheerleader.

But that wasn’t the worst part. The surgery and six month recovery period she was now facing would place a tremendous strain on the entire family. I was numb…I didn’t go to school for two days.

Only days after the surgery, Katie began her long road to recovery. First, she started therapy, and then after that, she began back-to-sport training under the guidance of Jensen Brent. Our hope was that Jensen would make her stronger and that maybe that she could return to the same form was she was before the injury. However, he helped her in more ways than we could have ever dreamed.

First, his positive and friendly demeanor worked wonders with Katie and with us. The most important part of our initial meeting with him was the trust factor. He was working with our daughter, and my wife, who had already been through six knee operations of her own and currently worked in physical therapy, was a tough sell. But immediately Jensen earned our trust…and Katie’s. His tone was reassuring and confident, and in the weeks that followed, he instilled an attitude in our daughter that she would come back stronger than she was before the injury. Katie trusted and believed in him.

As time passed, she looked forward to her training sessions and we could see her getting stronger, not just physically, but more important, mentally. Jensen gave her everything she needed to get back on the court with confidence. She was always a pretty tough girl, but Jensen’s influence was life-changing. He gave her the belief that she could overcome any obstacle, not just her knee injury, and that she would return to the game faster, stronger, and more determined than ever before. And as parents, we feel that Katie now understands that she can overcome whatever adversity she encounters, on the court or off, because Jensen taught her that she can do it.

The debt we owe to Jensen Brent for what he did for our daughter is too great to be repaid with dollars. He gave her physical strength, but more importantly a belief that she would return even better than before the injury. She doesn’t wear a brace, she doesn’t hesitate with her movements on the court, and she plays every bit as hard as she did prior to February 15th of 2011.

From one parent to another…if your child is ever injured and requires any type of rehabilitation, talk to him. One brief conversation and you’ll understand why he’s so good at what he does.