Kelly Walk Hines

Kelly Walk Hines is a Heartland Hero of the best kind, spreading hope and improving lives through her actions and example. A survivor of childhood abuse and witness to domestic violence that took her mother’s life when Kelly was just three, she grew up to author a book called, “Memoirs of An Invisible Child,” in which she documented her story and shared her experiences in building what has become a loving and successful life. Despite her past, Kelly become a passionate student and paid her way through nursing school, while specializing in the care of people suffering from mental illness. When her own children reached school age, Kelly took an offer with IMPACT, Vineland, working with and counseling  teenage girls. In this way, she not only raised her children, but became a second mother and role model for countless girls and young women over the years. Kelly was recently diagnosed with a rare disease called Transverse Myelitis (TM), a sister disease to Multiple Sclerosis (MS). While in other cases TM has been known to severely impair or even quickly paralyze, to date Kelly’s TM is manageable. Although she does experiences constant, aching pain, Kelly remains active and is a leading advocate in the fight to cure this debilitating disease. Once you meet and get to know Kelly, she is impossible to forget. For all she has done, and who she is, Kelly Walk Hines is truly a Heartland Hero.