The 18-year-old Evergreen High School student who was wounded during a shooting at the school last week warned fellow students about the attack as it unfolded, his uncle said in a video statement released Wednesday by the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
Matthew Silverstone remains in critical condition after the shooting and may be facing a “lifelong recovery,” his uncle, Kris Koehler, said in the statement.
He read get-well cards from Silverstone’s schoolmates that praised the teenager for his quick thinking and for warning others during the attack.
“For the last week or so, we have heard a lot about the shooter — what might or might not have been in his mind,” Koehler said. “And rather than dwelling on that, we wanted everyone to know about Matthew. That he’s not just the critically injured victim. That’s true, but there is so much more to Matthew than that. So much life, so much love.”
Silverstone was shot at the very end of the nine-minute attack on the high school carried out by a 16-year-old student at the school.
A witness on Tuesday 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.
Representatives for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office did not answer questions Wednesday about how the two boys came into contact or how their interaction unfolded. The office also did not answer questions about the shooter’s route through the school or where inside the building the other victim, who has not been publicly identified, was shot.
The 16-year-old attacker died by suicide shortly after shooting Silverstone, as law enforcement officers closed in.
“He’s still fighting for his life,” Koehler said of Silverstone in the video statement. “Every day we have glimmers of hope. …To see him there, it’s great when he will squeeze a hand, but at the same time, it is so painful to see. That anyone, especially a kid, that anyone would have to endure that.”
Silverstone was adopted by his mother, Paige Silverstone, after joining her in foster care as a 6-month old, Koehler said, adding that the infant was pulled out of an abusive situation.
Paige Silverstone has not left her son’s side since the attack, he said.
“She has had this feeling of that she failed him by not being there to protect him, to guard him when this happened,” he said.
Matthew Silverstone is a typical teenager, Koehler said. He loves to eat, to hang out with friends and to spend time at the skate park. He is gentle, kind and is quick to jump into action during unexpected or emergency situations, his uncle said.
The family launched a fundraising campaign this week as they’ve started to realize how much long-term care Matthew Silverstone may need, Koehler said.
“We are coming to grips with what could potentially be a lifelong recovery and all the needs and extra burdens that is going to put on my sister,” he said, adding later, “At that first glance, you just want to melt in pain for him… And you immediately realize this is not the same kid you knew a week ago.”
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