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Leonard Linn – 2018 Lincoln GOAL Award

Leonard is a pillar in the community of Iowa Falls, Iowa, a close-knit town just eighty miles northeast of Des Moines. “Lenny” as he is commonly known, has served as funeral home director of Linn’s Funeral Home which he established in 1958.
In February of 2015, Lenny was clearing snow in front of his business when the snowplow became caught in a crack and pitched him into the windshield. The severe jolt whiplashed Lenny’s neck and severely bruised his spinal cord. At a Des Moines hospital, surgeons told Lenny’s wife Jean he likely wouldn’t recover and to start researching nursing home options. Instead, Lenny’s family explored other solutions and within two weeks, he transferred to Madonna’s Lincoln Campus. With Jean by his side, Lenny began his extensive rehabilitation journey.
The popular business owner, husband, father and grandfather was completely dependent on others for everything. Through six months of challenging therapies, Lenny worked to regain control of his body. Progress started in his foot and slowly made its way up his body. Jean provided constant loving support and learned everything right alongside her husband.
When Lenny transferred to Madonna’s outpatient Rehabilitation Day program in September, aquatic therapy provided a fun, challenging environment to work on his first steps. Lenny used a full range of technology during his recovery, including the Armeo, Lokomat, and ICARE. His balance, strength and stamina increased so dramatically Lenny now walked 400 feet using only a cane.
On his final day at Madonna, the six-foot-three Iowan stood tall as he walked out the doors. The magnitude of Lenny’s recovery was captured in a poignant moment during his son’s graduation from Chief Warrant Officer school at Fort Rucker, Alabama. With Jean by his side, a confident Lenny stood independently and proudly saluted their son.