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A teenager shot during a Fourth of July celebration at The Banks one year ago says her life in many ways is back to normal. She is still working to overcome the trauma of what she experienced in July 2021.Brooke Williams, 17, is preparing to enter her senior year of high school. She’s looking forward to prom, visiting colleges, cheerleading and performing with her competitive dance team. Her mother Catrina Oliver is an emergency room nurse at a local trauma center. She knows all too well how violent and deadly gunshot wounds can be. Now she understands the emotional trauma on a different level. “Every time I see somebody lose their life it’s hard not to think like that could have been my child. That was one call I never ever wanted to receive and I received it,” Oliver said. The call last Fourth of July notified her that her daughter, her only child, had been shot. Oliver said she warned her daughter not to go to the Banks that evening, fearing a shooting could happen.RELATED: Williams went to see a movie in Newport with a few friends and then walked across the bridge to the Banks. She said she heard people fighting and stuck around to watch what happened next. “I haven’t seen people fight, like actually use their hands in years. So that was kind of like a red flag,” Williams said.Gunshots rang out as fireworks were being fired off. At first, Williams did not realize anyone was shooting. Then people started running.”I just looked down, and there happened to be a hole in my arm,” Williams said. She was one of five teenagers shot. Only three, all said to be bystanders, survived. At the time, Cincinnati police said the two young men who died were the shooters. The investigation is still ongoing. Oliver found her daughter at UC Medical Center’s emergency room.”I wanted to fight her and hug her at the same time,” she said, chuckling. “I was just so happy that it wasn’t worse than what it was. She could have been one of them young men that died.”The bullet was removed from Williams’ arm about a month after the shooting. She still has a scar. Her mother said she was depressed immediately following the shooting but counseling helped significantly.Williams said she no longer likes the sound of fireworks or loud noises. She also said she has learned to be more aware of her surroundings and understands how quickly chaos can happen. “If you have a bad feeling, don’t ignore your feeling ’cause your gut feelings are always right and they’re going to steer you in the right direction,” she said. “Going against your gut feeling could be sometimes fatal.”
A teenager shot during a Fourth of July celebration at The Banks one year ago says her life in many ways is back to normal.
She is still working to overcome the trauma of what she experienced in July 2021.
Brooke Williams, 17, is preparing to enter her senior year of high school.
She’s looking forward to prom, visiting colleges, cheerleading and performing with her competitive dance team.
Her mother Catrina Oliver is an emergency room nurse at a local trauma center. She knows all too well how violent and deadly gunshot wounds can be.
Now she understands the emotional trauma on a different level.
“Every time I see somebody lose their life it’s hard not to think like that could have been my child. That was one call I never ever wanted to receive and I received it,” Oliver said.
The call last Fourth of July notified her that her daughter, her only child, had been shot.
Oliver said she warned her daughter not to go to the Banks that evening, fearing a shooting could happen.
RELATED:
Williams went to see a movie in Newport with a few friends and then walked across the bridge to the Banks.
She said she heard people fighting and stuck around to watch what happened next.
“I haven’t seen people fight, like actually use their hands in years. So that was kind of like a red flag,” Williams said.
Gunshots rang out as fireworks were being fired off. At first, Williams did not realize anyone was shooting.
Then people started running.
“I just looked down, and there happened to be a hole in my arm,” Williams said.
She was one of five teenagers shot.
Only three, all said to be bystanders, survived.
At the time, Cincinnati police said the two young men who died were the shooters.
The investigation is still ongoing.
Oliver found her daughter at UC Medical Center’s emergency room.
“I wanted to fight her and hug her at the same time,” she said, chuckling. “I was just so happy that it wasn’t worse than what it was. She could have been one of them young men that died.”
The bullet was removed from Williams’ arm about a month after the shooting.
She still has a scar.
Her mother said she was depressed immediately following the shooting but counseling helped significantly.
Williams said she no longer likes the sound of fireworks or loud noises.
She also said she has learned to be more aware of her surroundings and understands how quickly chaos can happen.
“If you have a bad feeling, don’t ignore your feeling ’cause your gut feelings are always right and they’re going to steer you in the right direction,” she said. “Going against your gut feeling could be sometimes fatal.”
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