In August 2008, a small plane crashed in St Johns , Arizona . It’s the type of story that makes the local news and not much more. The plane held three occupants: a pilot and a young married couple. The pilot, Doug Kinneard, died the next day. The young couple was badly burned. The husband suffered burns over 30% of his body. The wife, 80% of her body. News of the accident spread from the local Arizona papers to Provo and Salt Lake City , Utah papers, as the wife, Stephanie Nielson, was a Provo native. Her friends and family still reside in the area. If this accident had happened to anyone else, the story might have ended there, in the local papers. It would not have continued on to the Today Show, the New York Times, and news outlets across the United States. But the surviving victims of this accident were Stephanie “Nie” and Christian Nielson. “Nie” is a popular LDS “mommy blogger,” with a devoted following across the Internet. She was known for her public declarations of affection for her beloved husband, known to her readers simply as Mr. Nielson. She was considered a bright spot to many. Her blog, NieNieDialogues.Blogspot.com, was full of optimism, love, and adoration for her four young children. She helped her readers appreciate motherhood and see the joy in the challenges it presents. The New York Times reported, ” Ms. Nielson’s blog made motherhood “sound like the highest calling on earth: a job full of color and vibrancy and of the utmost importance,” said Wendy Whitacre, a photographer in Temecula, Calif., who said she read the blog for years before recently meeting her when the family hired her for a portrait. “When my own children are whining and crying and tugging on my clothes and taking up every inch of personal space I have, I think of how she’d react to the situation, and it completely changes the way I act,” she said in an e-mail message.
Shortly after the accident Nie’s sister, Courtney Kendrick, known to the blogosphere as “C Jane,” quickly updated her sister’s readers with the simple and understated phrase, “there has been an accident.” Over the days and weeks to come, Courtney would fill in for her sister on her blog, updating readers regularly as to her condition. The NieNieDialogues went from roughly 1,000 readers a day to spikes of 20,000 readers at a time. In the days following the accident, and in the days that have continued since, comments poured in from around the world from Stephanie’s readers. “It’s so strange, feeling like you know someone from reading their blog(s) every day and feeling such ache over this news, even though you’ve never had a real-life conversation with them. Thank you for thinking of us “readers” and please let us know if there’s anything else we can do (besides praying),” from “Sara.” “Nisa” said, “We will be praying for your whole family, here in Texas . Our God is a God of miracles, a God of love, and a God of life eternal. ” “It’s amazing how connected you can feel to someone without ever meeting them face-to-face. After reading this today, I stopped immediately & said a short prayer to give comfort & peace to the whole family, and that life as usual can resume soon. I will continue praying. Can’t wait to hear of their speedy recovery,” came from another reader. Thousands more comments from strangers have not stopped being sent since the day of the accident. “I did have a difficult time sleeping for the first few days after the accident,” said Stephanie Brubaker, 31, a blogger in Salt Lake City who follows Ms. Nielson’s blog. “It was taking over my life a little bit. But I’m buoyed up by the way the blogging community has responded. It’s such a unique community,” reported the New York Times. Nie’s followers and friends began mobilizing to raise funds for this young mother and blogger they had oftentimes never met. Online auctions, silent auctions, donations, yard sales, 5K races, and concerts were held in Arizona and across the country to raise funds for the beloved blogger and friend Nie. Most recently a book entitled, “Something Cleverish” was also written and published with all proceeds going to the Nie Nie Recovery Fund. Suddenly the story was no longer about the tragic plane crash. Instead, the story was about the influence of just one person and her blog, how her words had touched so many, and about the outpouring of support for this young couple coming in from around the world. In September, the Today Show, with Matt Lauer as the interviewer, ran a six minute segment on the Nielsons and Stephanie’s siblings, and the influence one person had on so many readers. At the close of the interview, Lauer profoundly noted, “I think you teach us all a little bit about family and positive attitudes.” Each life that touches ours for good
It has been five months since the accident. The grand gestures of love and support have not stopped. Christian and Stephanie have both left the hospital. And both continue to do well in special rehabilitation and therapy. Stephanie returned to the helm of her blog on January 16th , much to the delight of her readers.
Their four young children have spent the last five months under the care of Stephanie’s sisters, Courtney and Lucy, in Utah , and are doing well. Claire, age 6 and Jane age 5, were recently the highlight of a benefit concert for their parents, held by popular LDS musician Mindy Gledhill. The two young girls bravely took to the stage to sing, “Golden Slumbers,” with Mindy. Their adorable presence assured there was not a dry eye in the room. The Nielsons now continue their rehabilitation in Utah hospitals. Stephanie’s family has come together to arrange for a home in Utah near them so that they can better take care of the Nielsons during their long recovery. And where Stephanie and Christian can be closer to their own children. To get a flavor for Stephanie, here is her latest blog entry, “Last night Mr. Nielson slowly walked through my door. I could tell he was sad. He had jus packed up our life in Arizona in a Allied moving truck. He told me how sad it was to say goodbye to the back porch where many, many meals were served. Hard to wish the beautiful 2-story tree-house he constructed with his own two hands good luck in hopes the new owners won’t tear her down out of that awesome mulberry tree. “Mr. Nielson lay next to me in tears. He smelled like the cologne I had offered him for Christmas last year-in the house. ‘I sprayed it on before they boxed it up…reminds me of Arizona …reminds me of you,’ he softly said. ‘The kitchen was lifeless without you.’
Benefits continue to be held around the country for them. People wishing to make a contribution can visit www.nierecovery.com. A second benefit concert by Mindy Gledhill will be held February 2, in Provo, UT at the Covey Center for the Arts. All ticket sales will go 100% to the Nie Recovery Fund. For more information visit www.mindygledhill.com. See a video about Stephanie and Christian Nielson here: No Comments | Post or read comments  FEATURES |
May 31, 2026
May 31, 2026
