TBI One Love Survivor Mike Dempsey

Hello my name is Mike Dempsey. I was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York (Flatbush / Kensington). attended Midwood High School and graduating from the State University of New York at Albany where I played both football, baseball and boxed as an amateur.

I played semi-professional football for the Bay Knights coached by Jim Binckes in 1988-89. An Arena Football League opportunity ended prematurely in Albany with the first of two ACL reconstructive surgeries and later was forced to abandon my professional football hopes and dreams after a failed rehabilitation stint and comeback with Tampa Bay in 1995- 1996. After an aborted attempt with World Championship Wrestling’s Power Plant training facility ended prematurely later that year, I embarked on a brand new career direction in banking and risk management with investment banking firm Salomon Brothers in Tampa the following year while completing an executive MBA in finance at Nova Southeastern University with a 3.97 GPA graduating summa cum laude.

While working for Credit Suisse First Boston in 5 World Trade Center, I was injured and hospitalized at NYU’s Beekman Hospital on September 11th, 2001 while trying to escape the second Tower when the second plane hit the Tower at 9:03am. What happened was, after the plane hit I was knocked unconscious as the second plane struck—suffering a fractured skull and internal bleeding. What followed wasn’t just survival. It was years of navigating PTSD, memory loss, brain fog, vertigo, executive function challenges, and the terrifying experience of not recognizing your own brain.

Shortly thereafter, became immersed in philanthropy and advocating for September 11^th families and survivors through the WTC United Family Group and the Coalition of 9/11 Families. Then on October 1st, 2017, was in Las Vegas, Nevada for filming of an episode of the Animal Planet hit television show “Tanked” and was staying at the Mandalay Bay hotel during the Route 91 concert mass shooting and was outside the hotel when the shots were fired and ended up in lockdown during the chaos. After this, I decided to channel both my September 11th and Las Vegas experiences with PTSD, etc to help other victims and survivors’ families cope with their ‘new normal.’ I coordinated a roundtable for healing with Parkland MSD school shooting families and survivors with September 11th, Las Vegas, Columbine / Aurora, Boston Marathon, & other victims of terrorism in early 2019.

Over the years, I have also championed many causes to help special needs children and adults like one of my very own daughters: Kellie who’s on the autism spectrum. Through my podcast ‘Dads & Daughters show” and its 24 episodes over 2 seasons, Kellie and I have tackled tough issues such as bullying / teen suicide, gun safety / school mass shootings, addiction and recovery, as well as highlighting the inspirational stories and accomplishments of individual ‘superheroes’ with Downs Syndrome, Tourettes, etc.

Fast forward to most recently- in 2023, I was diagnosed with dementia and suspected CTE. I also participated that year in the Boston University CTE Center Project SAVE study for the Concussion Legacy Foundation.

Thank you TBI One Love for the work and the awareness you do.

Learn more about the work I do: https://themikedempsey.com/about-mike/