Photo by Jennell May
Jennell May, a volunteer and member at Hope United Methodist Church in Southfield and a member of the Greater Detroit District’s Marketing and Communications Committee, shares a powerful story of faith and resilience. After surviving a devastating car accident 22 years ago, Jennell’s journey of recovery deepened her relationship with God and shaped the way she now serves the church and captures moments of ministry through photography.
By ADRIENNE TRUPIANO
Media Specialist
Twenty two years ago, on January 24, 2004, Jennell May’s life changed in an instant.
Just two weeks into the second semester of her junior year at Howard University, Jennell was driving only blocks from her home when a drunk driver sped through a red light and crashed into the driver’s side of her car. The impact left her comatose for five weeks. She suffered a traumatic brain injury, a neck fracture, and left sided paralysis.
Jennell spent two months in the hospital and more than a year in intensive rehabilitation. Even now, decades later, she continues various forms of therapy for the long lasting effects of her injuries.
Her survival was uncertain in those early days. Jennell later learned that federal investigators returned to the hospital repeatedly, waiting to see whether she would survive her injuries.
But Jennell did survive, and what followed would become a long and deeply spiritual journey.
A Different Way of Seeing
When Jennell reflects on those early years after the accident, she remembers both the victories and the losses. The trauma of her brain injury affected relationships and altered parts of her life she once took for granted.
Yet in the midst of grief, she discovered something unexpected.
Her traumatic brain injury affected her short term memory and cognitive processing. While those challenges were difficult, they also changed the way she experienced the world around her.
“The little things brought me joy,” Jennell recalls. “I saw the world as much more beautiful than I ever remembered it being.”
During rehabilitation, she received her first digital camera. Photography, which once simply captured everyday moments, became something much deeper.
“I always say I see the world in Technicolor,” she explains. “The colors were bolder, warmer, more saturated.”
Long walks in nature became a place of peace during her recovery. Lakes, plants, and quiet landscapes offered space for reflection and prayer. Through photography, Jennell began capturing what she saw — the beauty of creation and the lessons she felt God revealing to her along the way.
What began as a coping mechanism soon became a spiritual practice.
Photo by Jennell May
Carried by Faith
Jennell says that even before she recognized it, the Holy Spirit was guiding her through her recovery.
A verse she learned as a child continued to echo in her mind during the hardest moments. From the Beatitudes in Matthew 5:3: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
That promise sustained her during the first year after the accident. “If I didn’t die in that accident,” she remembers thinking, “then I might as well get busy trying to become the person God saved me to be.”
Her spiritual journey eventually led her to Hope United Methodist Church in Southfield, Michigan. Having attended events there during her high school years, Jennell asked her mother if they could begin worshipping there during her recovery. At Hope UMC, Jennell’s faith began to grow in new ways.
One Sunday, attending worship on her own, she responded to the invitation to discipleship. Standing before the congregation, she shared her story and expressed her desire to be baptized. In June of that year, Jennell was baptized.
The moment itself, she laughs now, became memorable for an unexpected reason. As she was lowered into the baptismal pool, she forgot to hold her breath and came up coughing water. “It turned a sacred moment into an especially unforgettable one,” she says with a smile.
Trusting the Climb
Years later, another moment of clarity would shape Jennell’s calling.
While volunteering at Oasis Christian Center in Los Angeles, Jennell attended a retreat in the mountains of Twin Peaks, California. At the time she was exploring graduate school options but felt uncertain about pursuing them, particularly with the challenges of her brain injury.
During the retreat, participants were invited to hike through steep mountain terrain. Jennell worried she would not be able to make the climb because of balance issues caused by her injury. Her group encouraged her to continue, helping her find a walking stick they jokingly named her “Moses stick.”
With their support, she slowly made her way up the steep path. When she finally reached the top, she was met with a breathtaking view across the mountains. Later that evening, during a time of prayer and reflection, Jennell felt a clear message from the Holy Spirit.
Just as she had trusted her group to help her reach the mountaintop, she felt God asking her to trust Him in the same way. “I said yes,” she recalls. “I would apply to seminary.”
Jennell went on to attend Fuller Theological Seminary, where she pursued a master’s degree in Worship, Theology, and the Arts. The program challenged her intellectually and physically, but she remained determined.
“Passing every class was a miracle,” she says. “Just because God calls you to something doesn’t mean the journey will be easy.” After seven demanding years, she completed the degree — an accomplishment she considers one of the greatest victories of her life.
Photo by Jennell May
Faith in Action
Today, Jennell’s faith continues to guide her work and service. She volunteers regularly at Hope United Methodist Church and serves on the Marketing and Communications Committee for the Greater Detroit District of the Michigan Conference. As part of that role, Jennell often serves as a photographer for district events.
Through her lens, she looks for moments of connection — the quiet interactions, expressions of joy, and glimpses of community that reveal God’s work among people.
“I want to capture the human moments,” she says. “People gathered together with the intention of doing God’s work for God’s children.”
Her love for photography remains deeply connected to her faith. Nature photography in particular continues to be a source of reflection and prayer.
For Jennell, the beauty of creation points directly to the creativity of God. “God is the ultimate artist,” she says. “Earth might be the Lord’s greatest canvas.”
Photo by Jennell May
Lessons in Grace
Looking back over the past two decades, Jennell says the accident taught her something profound about life. “Surely everyone stands as a mere breath,” she says, quoting Psalm 39.
Life, she says, moves quickly. Each person’s opportunity to shape the world around them is brief but meaningful. Even when life feels small or uncertain, Jennell believes each person matters deeply to God. “Each of us may seem insignificant on the grand scale of creation,” she explains. “But to God, we are everything.”
A Message for Others
Jennell understands that many people today are walking through their own seasons of trauma, grief, or uncertainty. Her encouragement is simple but deeply rooted in experience.
“God is an incredibly compassionate artist,” she says. “Our trials shape us. They break us down and transform us.”
Though the process can feel overwhelming, she believes God remains present through every step. “Joy comes in the morning,” she says. “If we can trust Him and keep going.”
For Jennell, the journey of healing continues. But so does the beauty she discovered along the way — a world still vibrant, still filled with color, and still pointing toward hope. And through her camera lens, she continues to share that vision with others.