Shooting victim doing well in with rehabilitation

Kathy Newell still has a stack of "shining stars" that patients have given to her daughter, Kristina Bosco, to show their gratitude for the care they received from her at Southeast Missouri Hospital.

"She takes it to heart. She loves every patient she's ever had," Newell said Thursday.

Now Bosco, 30, has spent the past few days in the beginning stages of rehabilitation at Saint Francis Medical Center following a life-saving brain surgery Sept. 8 to repair damage caused after her stepfather, Don Newell, shot her in the forehead at point blank range.

The shooting occurred the afternoon of Sept. 8, in a residence at 281 Tecumseh Lane in Cape Girardeau County. Newell took his own life after shooting Bosco.

Kathy Newell was in another room at the time the shooting occurred and said she has no idea what triggered it.

"At this point, I believe only God knows exactly what happened and why," she said.

Bosco was conscious after the shooting, though her mother recalls waiting what seemed to her like an eternity for the ambulance to arrive at the residence.

When Bosco was transported to Saint Francis, swelling in her brain had caused pressure, putting her in a coma.

Two days later, she was able to communicate with her family, something Kathy Newell regards as a miracle.

"If no one ever believed in miracles before, they should now," she said.

A week-and-a half later, Bosco has exhibited a remarkably speedy recovery thus far, said neurosurgeon Dr. Joel Ray.

"Her speech is extremely clear, her sense of humor is stunning, and her insight about the meaning of the whole thing has been very mature," Ray said.

Her near-death experience has only strengthened the bond between mother, daughter, and Bosco's own 11-year-old daughter, who Kathy Newell said calls her every night before bedtime.

"I'm doing everything i can to take care of both of them," Kathy Newell said.

Though Ray said Bosco's release will depend on her continued response to rehabilitation, Kathy Newell said her daughter is already asking to come home.

"She can't wait to hold her cat, Moses," she said.

bdicosmo@semissourian.com

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