Matt Brown was a 15-year-old sophomore at Norwood High School in Massachusetts when he suffered a spinal cord injury during a high school hockey game in 2010. He spent 21 days at Children’s Hospital Boston, then 100 days in Atlanta, GA at the Shepherd Center Rehabilitation Center before returning to his home town of Norwood.

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From the beginning, Matt was determined that he was not going to let the injury define the way he was going to live his life. Matt had missed 4 months of school but had a goal of graduating with his class. He committed to taking classes over the summer, started his junior year on time and one year later graduated from high school on time, receiving the “Golden Diploma Award” for overcoming adversity. He went on to attend college at Stonehill College in Easton MA, where he lived on campus all four years and earned a degree in Communications. 

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Matt is the author of the book Line Change, which he wrote with Todd Civin, which chronicles his experiences, from the day of the accident to current day. The book gives the reader a personal account of what Matt was feeling and experiencing over the last 10 years, as well as hearing from his family and friends on how Matt has affected their lives.

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In his spare time, Matt is a motivational speaker to high schools, colleges, and professional organizations about dealing with challenges and change and overcoming adversity. Matt likes to stay active in his spare time and he and his running partner have completed 11 marathons in the assisted runner category in Boston, New York City, and Hyannis. He is an avid sports fan and enjoys travel.