Table Of ContentPrologue 1 THE EXCHANGE 2 APRIL 26, 2006 3 ICU 4 COMING TO GRIPS WITH A NEW REALITY 5 WAITING 6 COMFORT IN THE MIDST OF PAIN 7 FROM FORT WAYNE TO SYDNEY AND EVERY POINT IN BETWEEN 8 FIRST MILESTONE 9 "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, WHITNEY" 10 TURNING A CORNER 11 A CELEBRATION OF LIFE 12 "HI" 13 "LIFE WILL NEVER BE THE SAME AGAIN" 14 WAKING UP 15 MISTAKEN IDENTITY 16 TELLING THE FAMILY 17 BACK FROM THE DEAD 18 HOPE IN TRAGEDY 19 AFTER THE HURRICANE 20 FAST FORWARD 21 MOVING AHEAD Epilogue from Whitney In Honor of Those Lost Acknowledgments
SynopsisStraight from the headlines comes the story of two students, one buried under the wrong name, one in a coma being cared for by the wrong family, and the heart wrenching discovery five weeks later that their identities had been mistakenly reversed. of b&w photos., Meet Laura Van Ryn and Whitney Cerak: one buried under the wrong name, one in a coma and being cared for by the wrong family.This shocking case of mistaken identity stunned the country and made national news. Would it destroy a family? Shatter their faith? Push two families into bitterness, resentment, and guilt?Read this unprecedented story of two traumatized families who describe their ordeal and explore the bond sustaining and uniting them as they deal with their bizarre reversal of life lost and life found.And join Whitney Cerak, the sole surviving student, as she comes to terms with her new identity, forever altered, yet on the brink of new beginnings."Mistaken Identity" weaves a complex tale of honesty, vulnerability, loss, hope, faith, and love in the face of one of the strangest twists of circumstances imaginable.