Mindy Rowland performs with her Fishermen at the 44th Annual Alaska Folk Festival in Centennial Hall on Monday, April 9, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Mindy Rowland performs with her Fishermen at the 44th Annual Alaska Folk Festival in Centennial Hall on Monday, April 9, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

A brain injury took away her speech. Music helped bring it back

Wearing a purple sweater, purple skirt, black leggings and purple nail polish to match, Mindy Rowland bounded onto the stage on the first night of Folk Fest.

“Everybody having fun?” she asked the crowd, which whooped and clapped its response.

Like many Folk Fest performers, Rowland and her band (called Mindy Rowland and Her Fishermen) had been preparing for months for their 20-minute set on the stage at Centennial Hall.

For Rowland, this was more than just a few months in the making. This performance came four years almost exactly after she suffered an injury that altered the course of her life and nearly took away her ability to speak.

For the rest of this story, visit the Juneau Empire.

Mindy Rowland performs with her Fishermen at the 44th Annual Alaska Folk Festival in Centennial Hall on Monday, April 9, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Mindy Rowland performs with her Fishermen at the 44th Annual Alaska Folk Festival in Centennial Hall on Monday, April 9, 2018. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

More in News

Soldotna City Manager Janette Bower, right, speaks to Soldotna Vice Mayor Lisa Parker during a meeting of the Soldotna City Council in Soldotna, Alaska, on Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Soldotna tweaks bed tax legislation ahead of Jan. 1 enactment

The council in 2023 adopted a 4% lodging tax for short-term rentals

Member Tom Tougas speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Tourism Industry Working Group in Soldotna, Alaska, on Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Tourism Industry Working Group holds 1st meeting

The group organized and began to unpack questions about tourism revenue and identity

The Nikiski Pool is photographed at the North Peninsula Recreation Service Area in Nikiski, Alaska, on Saturday, Aug. 3, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion file)
Nikiski man arrested for threats to Nikiski Pool

Similar threats, directed at the pool, were made in voicemails received by the borough mayor’s office, trooper say

A sign welcomes visitors on July 7, 2021, in Seward, Alaska. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)
Seward council delays decision on chamber funding until January work session

The chamber provides destination marketing services for the city and visitor center services and economic development support

A table used by parties to a case sits empty in Courtroom 4 of the Kenai Courthouse in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Crane sentenced again to 30 years in prison after failed appeal to 3-judge panel

That sentence resembles the previous sentence announced by the State Department of Law in July

Kenai City Manager Paul Ostrander sits inside Kenai City Hall on Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion file)
Ostrander named to Rasmuson board

The former Kenai city manager is filling a seat vacated by former Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Mike Navarre

Joe Gilman is named Person of the Year during the 65th Annual Soldotna Chamber Awards Celebration at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex on Wednesday. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Gilman, PCHS take top honors at 65th Soldotna Chamber Awards

A dozen awards were presented during the ceremony in the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex conference rooms

Alaska State Troopers logo.
Troopers respond to car partially submerged in Kenai River

Troopers were called to report a man walking on the Sterling Highway and “wandering into traffic”

Seward City Hall is seen under cloudy skies in Seward, Alaska, on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Seward council approves 2025 and 2026 budget

The move comes after a series of public hearings

Most Read