In 1998, Emily was in her early teens, struggling with increasing blindness and suffering from severe headaches. The Mary Lyons Foundation arranged for her to meet with her hero, singer Garth Brooks. Brooks spent three days with Emily and her mother Val in New York, putting them up in a hotel, buying them a video camera, and treating them like longtime friends. At the end of the visit, he autographed his touring guitar and gave it to her.