Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- Sha Reh, an 18-year-old shooting survivor, is recovering well and is expected to be released from the hospital soon..
- He lost his immediate family in the shooting at his West Valley City home and is now blind. He also has memory loss.
- Sha Reh plans to graduate from high school and hopes to attend the University of Utah.
WEST VALLEY CITY — An 18-year-old who survived a shooting that killed the rest of his immediate family in December is expected to be released from the hospital soon.
Teachers from Granger High School visited Sha Reh in the hospital and reported he is "recovering well." The school called it "one of the most fabulous miracles of the season."
Reh, who was 17 at the time, was shot in the head during a shooting spree at his home that took the lives of the rest of his immediate family. Police believe Reh's father shot his wife and four children, including Sha Reh, before shooting himself.
The teenager was found alive but critically injured in the garage on Dec. 17 following a welfare check at the home. His family members were dead inside the home, including his mother, Bu Meh, 38; brother Boe Reh, 11; sister Kristina Ree, 8; and sister Nyay Meh, 2. His father was also found dead with a gun.
Sha Reh progressed over the following weeks in the shock trauma unit at Intermountain Medical Center to rehabilitation, according to his extended family, who called him "our miracle and our hero."
The teen was rendered blind, and doctors "do not know if or when he will recover his vision," a statement from the family says. "At present, he cannot see. At times, he can discern when a room is light or dark, but such episodes are sporadic and inconsistent."
The 18-year-old also suffers memory loss that is steadily improving, the family says. Sha Reh "cannot remember the tragic events of that December night," but "his short- and long-term memory has improved significantly since first being hospitalized," according to the statement.
A funeral for the boy's parents and siblings was held on his 18th birthday, but the extended family says, "Despite his incomprehensible loss, he has stated that he feels 'hopeful' regarding the future. Sha Reh has all the requirements to graduate from Granger High School, where he is an honor student, and hopes to enroll at the University of Utah in the fall.
Before then, the family says Sha Reh will likely enroll in the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind "so that he can learn critical life skills in preparation to live independently."
The Granger High School staff raised money to purchase headphones for Sha Reh, and many of his teachers visited him to pass along the gift.
"We're so glad to see him doing so well! Lots of Lancer Love for Sha!" a Facebook post says.
"He has a long and complex road to recovery. He needs our full attention, our unconditional love and the Savior's gifts of healing and peace," the mother's extended family said shortly after the shooting.
A GoFundMe* has been started to help with medical costs, to "assist his new family with a larger vehicle to fit them all, and ... enable him to fulfill his dreams and live his life with purpose," according to the family.
*KSL.com does not assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisers and otherwise proceed at your own risk.
