Man Shot with 18 Bullets Leaves Hospital After Only 2 Days: 'I got kids, I can't die'
After being shot by a paranoid gunman 18 times in just a matter of moments, Terry Smith, 34, should probably be dead.
But Smith is prepared to make an incredible comeback, returning to work with scars on his body and a renewed gratitude for life in his heart.
Smith, who happily described himself as “boring,” lived a quiet, low-key life working to provide for his family.
But on the morning of March 25, while taking a break from his hotel housekeeping job, Smith’s life took an uncontrollable turn for the worse.
He was sitting in his car, unaware that a violent gunman had eyes on him.
Smith recalled the shocking sound of glass shattering, and the next thing he knew, his body was riddled with bullets.
“When I looked up, I just saw somebody standing out there with a gun,” Smith told WKYC. “It’s like he was shooting to kill, basically. And I’ve never seen this guy in my life.”
Smith ended up with gunshot wounds to his head, face, chest and arms; Eighteen individual bullet holes that, miraculously, did not pierce any major organs.
Confused and in shock, Smith knew he had to get help.
“I knew I was shot a lot of times. I just was wondering, Why? Like, why?” Smith recalled. “It was blood everywhere.”
Smith managed to drive eight blocks away from the crime scene until he saw a group of hotel employees and stopped for help.
“I ran in there and I was like, Can y’all help me? I’ve just been shot. Everybody was running around going crazy. I was just standing around, like, oh man, I’m messing up these people’s hotel,” Smith said.
Smith recalled waiting for an ambulance and thinking of his fiancée, Danielle, and two children, a 14-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son.
“I can’t die. That’s the only thing. I can’t die. I got kids. I can’t die,” he recalled saying to himself.
But Smith did not die that day, in fact, he amazed doctors with just how quickly he was able to recover from what could have taken his life.
Incredibly, Smith was released from the hospital just two days after the incident and is focused on resuming his normal life. After about two months of recovery at home, Smith is preparing to go back to work.
Smith said that now, he thanks God every day for his life.
“I thank God every day for my family,” he said. “I just thank God every day. Just randomly out of the day, I’m just like, ‘Thank you God.’”
Smith also has a renewed understanding of just how much his family loves and appreciates him.
“I knew my family loved me,” he said. “I just didn’t know I was loved that much, like all the people that came to see me at the hospital.”
Smith is also prepared to leave the gunman’s violent actions in the past.
For Smith, two months of sitting around his house have been long enough. He was excited to get medical clearance from his orthopedic surgeon to resume working.
“I’m ready to go back to work,” Smith said. “I’m just ready. I’m ready. I can work today.”
Standing by his side, Danielle is thankful for her fiancé’s recovery.
“I’m just happy he’s here,” she said. “I’m happy he’s getting back to himself.”
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