HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. — Cooper Roberts, the 8-year-old boy paralyzed after being shot during the July 4 Highland Park mass shooting, made his next big step in his recovery journey... returning to school!
Cooper's parents, Jason and Keely Roberts, shared the special milestone in a statement on Monday. They said, for a long time, they weren't sure the day would ever come.
Cooper returned to school with his twin brother Luke this week. His parents say because of his weekly therapy, Cooper's transition back to school will be slow and gradual.
"Nevertheless, his return to school this week is an incredible milestone for a little boy who almost three months to the day of his first day of third grade had been desperately fighting for his life from critical gunshot wounds and is now wheelchair bound," Jason and Keely Roberts said in a statement.
Cooper's parents also shared that the family is learning how to cope with the new components of their new reality.
"We were so nervous we couldn’t sleep the night before his first day back," Jason and Keely Roberts said. "We cried in the parking lot as he wheeled himself into the school, cried as we pulled out of the parking lot...we were just a mess! He loved every minute, and his exact words were 'If I had not been shot, paralyzed, and had to be in a wheelchair, it would have been a perfect school day, but it was a really great day! I loved it!'"
Cooper returned home in late September after more than two months in the hospital.
To support the Roberts family in their ongoing medical, rehabilitation, and adaptive housing needs, visit their GoFundMe page.
