KANSAS CITY, Mo. — An 11-year-old girl paralyzed by a stray bullet from a rolling gun battle is out of the hospital and back home with family.
Lauren Reddick was in her bedroom just before 10 p.m. on Nov. 1 when the shooting started in the 7900 block of Hickman Mills Drive.
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She was hit in the spine and it left her without feeling in her lower body.
There's finally good news after weeks of recovery.
"My feeling is coming back," Lauren said.
Thursday was a big day for her.
Lauren was released in the afternoon from Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City.
"When I heard that she was going to be released today, I was excited," her grandmother, Stancy Reddick, said. "I couldn't sleep last night. I had butterflies today."
Lauren's recovery hasn't been easy, and there's still months more therapy and healing left.
Lauren says every week she spent in the hospital she thought of school, her friends, and someone special.
"I have a crush at school that I want to go see," Lauren said.
She says all those things motivated her and her progress is great.
She was released days early.
"I think my life is going to be different," she said.
It's tough for an 11-year-old to see past each day no matter how much someone tells them the outlook is good.
Thursday, she still couldn't feel her legs.
There have been signs grandma's prayers are being answered.
Stancy says she was touching Lauren's feet in the hospital when she said they could feel something.
"She says, 'Grandma, your hands are cold.' And I'm like, 'How do you know my hands are cold?' So we're just hopeful that she will gain full movement from the waist down," Stancy said.
Stancy's faith is a big motivator for her.
One prayer has already been answered.
"Her being able to come home before Christmas," Stancy said.
One more goal to go.
"She will walk again, she will run again," Stancy said.
You can help support her recovery though the GoFundMe page set up by her family.
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