The Buried Life on the mainstage in Royce Hall with Torri

MTV’s The Buried Life is about a group of four guys who help people achieve the items on their list of things to do before they die. They live by a conviction that anybody can do anything. Last night on the main stage at the Fourth Estate Summit, they proved that to be true, yet again.

Before we get into discussions of hopes becoming realities, let me give you some crucial information.

+ Torri, an 18 year old from Ohio, was born without her right hand.

+ Invisible Children and The Buried Life have been collecting responses to the question “what do you want to do before you die” in anticipation of the 2013 Fourth Estate Summit.

Torri has a friend named Cameron.

+ It was on Cameron’s bucket list to help Torri get an arm. Cameron submitted that dream to Invisible Children and The Buried Life (see where this is going?)

Needless to say, The Buried Life was into it.  So they sought out Hanger Clinic, one of the leading providers of prosthetic arms and prosthetic everythings here in the U.S., to see if anything could be done.

Meanwhile, a scheme was hatched to fly Torri and Cameron from Ohio to the Fourth Estate Leadership Summit in Los Angeles, California. Torri didn’t know why. Then last night, on stage, in front of 1,488 people, Torri found out that she will soon have two hands for the first time in her life.

Hanger Clinic is giving Torri a state-of-the-art bionic arm plus six months of physical therapy so that she can learn how to use it.

Torri was speechless. Cameron was grinning. The crowd was on its feet cheering and clapping. It was an emotional high for everybody. Best yet, this isn’t the end of the story. The Buried Life will be following up with Torri about her new arm in a few months’ time, and filming it.

We offer our sincerest thanks to the Buried Life for being here at the Fourth Estate Summit and for inspiring us to live like we mean it, to follow dreams that seem impossible, and to help other people achieve their dreams.

And thank you to Hanger Clinic for proving that the impossible isn’t. Their generous gift on such short notice is astounding and inspiring and emboldening. The desire to “empower human potential” couldn’t have found a better recipient than Torri. Am I right? I’m right.

Hanger Clinic