During the early morning hours of January 29, 2012 my little brother became the victim of a tragic crime. On the way home from a party with some highschool friends and fellow football teammates, someone attempted to take the life of my brother by shooting at the car he was driving. He was hit by 4 bullets with one of them causing a spinal injury which is what brought us to this site. We can never understand why someone tried to steal the joy from a 17 year old high school junior looking forward to his senior year of school and possibly earning a scholarship to play football for college but we do know that God spared his life for a reason. He is an athlete by heart so he has a lot of fight in him and being a defensive lineman, he is used to taking some heavy hits. We are a close knit family and we have a love for one another that is never ending. We have only grown closer through this unfortunate incident. His recovery has already been in the fast lane, only spending 9 hrs in ICU and 4 days in the hospital before moving to Rehab. He has an incomplete T3/T4 spinal injury and he has complete upper body movement and feeling all the way down to his toes but no movement from the waist down. He is currently wearing a CTO brace to minimize the movement of his neck which the doctor will see him again after 3 months to see if it can be removed. I am looking for any words of wisdom or encouragement, and any advice to help us through this journey. We know the road ahead is a very long one and we are ready for it. I know alot about the brain and spinal cord as I have a B.S. in Neuroscience and was in the process of applying to grad school to become a researcher for traumatic brain injuries before this happened. I am grateful for sites such as these and if anyone has any advice, medical or not, I gladly welcome it.