Ella Whistler, 13, was injured while sitting in her science class at Noblesville West Middle School on May 25, the Indianapolis Star reported. She suffered broken bones in her neck, ribs and jaw and one of her lungs collapsed, the newspaper reported. A bullet that entered her right arm caused "severe damage" to an artery, which doctors replaced.
Ella's parents told the Star that she underwent six hours of surgery, and that doctors told them the teen's arm may never fully recover.
Sunday, Ella sang the national anthem before the Colts hosted the Miami Dolphins at Lucas Oil Stadium. She then joined the Colts Cheerleaders as an honorary captain during the game, wearing her middle school cheerleading uniform, WXIN reported. She performed with the Colts Cheerleaders between the first and second quarters, the television station reported.
Ella Whistler shows the world how strong she is by performing with @ColtsCheer as our honorary captain for #MIAvsIND just 6 months after she was shot 7 times in the Noblesville West Middle School shooting. #EllaStrong pic.twitter.com/ynHIH1qzqn
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) November 25, 2018
"I get to do a lot of different things now because of this and I think it's really cool to have this experience a lifetime experience that no one ever really gets to do," Ella told WXIN.
Our honorary coin toss captain, Ella Whistler, is representing Noblesville West Middle School’s cheer & dance teams in this special performance! 😍💙✨ pic.twitter.com/ofSkjWh5dZ
— Colts Cheerleaders (@ColtsCheer) November 25, 2018
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