GASTON COUNTY, N.C. — A community is rallying behind 10-year-old Isla Blu Keener who was accidentally shot Friday in Gaston County.
“She fills my heart and makes me completely whole,” said Isla’s grandmother, Monica McAllister.
Isla is in intensive care at Levine Children’s Hospital.
Gaston County police said another child at their family’s home near Crouse somehow got a hold of a gun and shot the girl in the back.
“Collapsed both lungs, had a couple of vertebrae in her back that’s fractured,” said Isla’s grandfather Dwayne McAllister.
They have posted updates on their granddaughter’s condition and received prayers from across the country.
“We believe that’s what’s healing her now and that’s what will make her 100%,” Monica McAllister said.
They said visitation at the hospital is limited, but they make the most of the time they have with her.
“We take her by the hand and stand beside of her,” Dwayne McAllister said. “I tell her, ‘Hey, pretty girl. Poppa’s here.’”
They try to assure her that everything will be OK.
“Slowly taking it step by step, day by day, hour by hour,” her grandfather said.
They hope to know more about how she will recover next week and are asking for more prayers.
The police investigation is ongoing.
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