A family is praising God three months after a school shooter nearly took the life of their 14-year-old son. River Clardy was a Freshman at Abundant Life Christian School in Wisconsin when a 15-year-old student came armed to the school on December 16, 2024. The student killed a teacher and student, as well as injuring several others, including River. River’s mother, Christina Clardy, was a first year teacher at the school. “Just protecting my kids in my class that was the first thing I thought of,” she told a local station. She helped bring her students to safety at a church across from the school parking lot.

Christina then began to wonder about her own three children who attended the school. “I pretty quickly saw my two daughters and they were questioning me about where their brother was. I had not seen him, but I knew they were also still clearing out the school. It became pretty clear that some people were still missing… and one of my teaching team informed the police that my son was one of those people,” she said. When it was learned that River was one of the students who had been hurt, she and her daughters were taken to American Family Children’s Hospital to see him. River’s father, Brett, rushed to the hospital from Chicago. “I didn’t know anything other than he was at the hospital, that’s all I knew. I wasn’t sure of his condition, his state, his level of injuries. I was just driving.”

River had been shot multiple times, including three times in the neck. One bullet had even hit his carotid artery. “River was losing a lot of blood from injuries to his neck, to his throat, to his hip to his hand. His skin color was very pale. His heart rate was very high. Blood pressure was very low. All the clinical signs that he was very close to dying,” said Dr. Adam Brinkman, the medical director of pediatric trauma care.

Brett’s family prayed through it all, saying that his injuries were so extensive that he was hardly recognizable. The family shared how tirelessly doctors worked to save his life. “As his injuries resolved and he didn’t need any more surgeries, then it was time to allow him to wake up and see who River was. I stopped in the doorway, and he turned towards me. And I said, ‘River!’ And River said, ‘Good morning!’ Hearing his voice and seeing his eyes and realizing everything that he had just gone through, and a week later he’s saying good morning to me. There was no better feeling. It was incredible,” said Dr. Brinkman.

River would spend 46 days in the hospital. He had to relearn how to eat, walk, and many other self-care activities he had been able to do independently before. “We believe that God is a huge part of his healing through natural means like through the body healing itself and through some things that you know aren’t explainable to us. But he is, he’s done better than he should have,” said Christina. The incident has brought the family closer, as they learned to cherish the time they have together. “It’s important to give thanks for the good in our lives. And to recognize, you know, the good around us, like in the people in our community,” said Christina. “When our circumstances aren’t good, those things, those are things that are good…. I do have moments where I’m like, I can’t believe he’s alive, you know? I’m just really grateful.”