Kristi King, wtop.com
WASHINGTON – A brain defect one of the Colorado shooting victims has had since birth may have saved her life.
Petra Anderson, 22, is a musician and composer, who is enrolled in the University of Maryland’s graduate program for music, according to WJLA.
Anderson, who is expected to survive her injuries, was supposed to start at the university this fall. Now though, she’s just been moved out of intensive care into a brain trauma unit, according to her updates her sister posted on Facebook.
Anderson’s minister calls Anderson’s survival a miracle, describing the path of the bullet through her brain. It missed injuring brain tissue by traveling along a small channel of fluid caused by a benign brain defect, the Rev. Brad Strait said.
A website is collecting donations to help pay medical bills for Anderson and her mother whose breast cancer has moved into her liver, bones and lungs.
The Ready to Believe: Anderson Relief Fund website says the following:
“The first $100K raised goes to Petra’s surgery, medical, and recovery costs. The next $150K will be divided evenly between Kim’s (Anderson’s mother’s) year-long cancer treatment (about $150K) and the Colorado Organization for Victim Assistance (COVA), a non-profit tasked by the Aurora Police Department to gather and distribute aid in response to the Aurora shooting. If we exceed our goal and after Kim’s treatment needs are met, all additional money will go to COVA.”
As of 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, the website had raised nearly $82,000 of its $250,000 goal.
A related YouTube video has been created by Anderson’s sister:
To contribute, click on the Contribute Now button on Ready to Believe: Anderson Relief Fund site
Follow Kristi and WTOP on Twitter.
(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)
