An 18-year-old Evergreen High School student who was severely injured in last month’s school shooting was released from the hospital Tuesday.
Matthew Silverstone left CommonSpirit St. Anthony Hospital in Lakewood with about 140 first responders and hospital staff holding blue balloons and cheering his release, according to a news release from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. His current location is confidential.
Silverstone was shot twice — once in the head and once in the chest — when he confronted a shooter at his school on Sept. 10. Silverstone warned fellow students to flee and fought with the shooter near the end of the nine-minute attack.
A witness told The Denver Post that he saw two boys — later identified as the shooter and Silverstone — fighting and grappling near the intersection of Buffalo Park Road and South Olive Road before the shooter threw Silverstone to the ground and shot him.
Silverstone’s heart stopped once at the scene and again on the ambulance ride to the hospital, the news release said.
The teen’s family called his release five weeks after the attack “nothing short of miraculous.”
“After emergency surgeries, the doctors prepared us for the worst,” the family said in the sheriff’s news release. “But Matthew has never given up. He can now speak. In fact, he is happy to tell you, ‘I’m still alive!’ He can walk with assistance. His friends will tell you his sense of humor is back. He has exceeded everyone’s expectations in his recovery.”
Paige Silverstone, the teen’s mother, also thanked the law enforcement, health care workers and other students who have helped Matthew through his recovery.
“Your generosity has reminded us that we are not alone,” she said. “Each act of kindness, each word of encouragement, each prayer, has lifted Matthew and all of us more than I can ever express. You have helped carry us through our darkest moments. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for standing with us, for believing in miracles, and helping us hold on to hope.”
A 14-year-old who was shot during the attack left the hospital on Oct. 2.
That student, whose name has not been disclosed, confronted the shooter as the attack began and was shot at close range.
The shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after the attack. Authorities said he had been radicalized online by watching violent and extremist videos.
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