Eighteen months after being paralysed by a stray bullet in New Hall District, Manchester, Ne-Sean Blair is making steady progress towards living a normal life again.

The day the teenager was shot — March 30, 2021 — is unforgettable because of the crippling injury and the fact that he was marking his 16th birthday.

Ne-Sean was in a shop in his community purchasing a drink when a man entered and ordered a cigarette. The shopkeeper told him there was none. The man then pulled a gun from his waistband and opened fire at another man inside the shop. While scampering for cover, Ne-Sean was hit by a bullet.

Through the help of donors, agencies and entities such as the Office of the Children’s Advocate and National Commercial Bank (NCB), Ne-Sean was flown to the United States where he is receiving therapy and advanced medical care since July 23 this year.

“I don’t have much to say other than I just feel good,” Ne-Sean told the Jamaica Observer last week.

His mother, Kedine Wilson-Blair, said he has been responding well to treatment and is now able to brush his teeth, which he was unable to do shortly after being shot.

Noting that the treatment he is receiving is very expensive, she expressed gratitude to God and all the people who have been supporting the family.

Wilson-Blair shared that she is very confident that her son will bounce back with the care he is receiving overseas. She pointed out that a recent computed tomography (CT scan) showed that the bullet went through his spine, leaving behind fragments. She also said that doctors told her that they are focusing on providing therapy to make him independent and stronger.

“I still do a lot of fund-raising. Citizens help out a lot. I want to say thanks to NCB, the CHASE Fund and the Office of the Children’s Advocate. I feel so good. When I send videos to our relatives for them to see how he is doing in therapy, they get so happy. Everything the therapist puts him to do, he masters it. We are really happy about that,” she told the Observer.

“I am giving God thanks for what He is doing for my son and is about to do. Ne-Sean has made good improvements since he came here. He is able to drive a power wheelchair, which he couldn’t do before. He is also able to brush his teeth. When the incident happened, I used to have to do everything for Ne-Sean, but now, he has on a hand protector so I can put his toothbrush in it and he uses it to brush his teeth. He can also feed himself with his juice. Pertaining to feeding himself with food, he is not yet 100 per cent on that, but he is getting there stage by stage. I want to give God thanks for that,” she said.

Wilson-Blair explained that Ne-Sean has to do five days of physiotherapy every week and each session costs US$160 per hour. Additionally, he has to make weekly trips to the doctor and each visit costs US$596.

“Sometimes they want to do two hours of physiotherapy per day, but I have to do it how I can manage [financially]. It is very expensive and he doesn’t have insurance, so we have to pay up front. If he has an appointment I have to pay the money first before the doctors or the therapists can see him. If I don’t, he won’t be seen,” she said.

People wishing to donate to help Ne-Sean complete his therapy can reach out to his mother via WhatsApp at 876-880-4954.

In an interview with the Observer in February this year, Wilson-Blair had appealed to the Government to find a solution for crime.

“My son got shot and nothing has come out of it. Do something about these gunmen picking up guns and doing wrong,” she said, calling for stiffer penalties for gun crimes.