Area man releasing his book of triumph, redemption

Jun. 21—A Missouri Western State University graduate and upcoming author is releasing his memoir, "25 to Life," later this month.

"I kind of still don't believe in my life. Sometimes you wake up and it's very difficult. You never not think about it," Corey Blevins said.

What was supposed to be a birthday celebration for one of Blevins' friends turned out to be the most life-changing event of his life. On Feb. 1, 2004, Blevins was shot breaking up an altercation at the VFW hall located on St. Joseph Avenue. This left Blevins wheelchair-bound.

"I heard a gunshot and as soon as I got hit ... I believe in my upper scapula area, I just kind of jerked forward and I instantly knew, like, this is bad," Blevins said.

After he was shot, Blevins spent months in the ICU dealing with three realities: the trauma of being shot, not being able to speak and rehab.

"The last time I was home was December or early January. You come to the home that you've always gone to. I had to go to a different room and then reality set in," Blevins said.

Blevins said the one thing that has kept him grounded and inspired over the last 20 years is volunteering with kids and leaning on his family to get him through.

"My perspective turned around a little bit, not totally in life, I started to drive and then I came back to college and it's like, what's next?

What was next was a book nine years in the making. It brought the light and dark times together to form a book about persevering. Blevins said that's not about fully arriving, but being grateful for every stop ahead of your destination.

As he recalls the moments before he thought his life was over.

"I told myself if I close my eyes again ... I just felt I wasn't going to wake back up," he said.

Blevins has done more than wake up but has created a new life for himself through publishing and his other brands focusing on gun violence reform and mental health awareness.

"25 to Life" will be released on Amazon on June 29.