Since the events of Feb. 14, 2018, junior Samantha Mayor has been making a steady recovery. Mayor was shot once in the knee and received surgery to clean out the wound.

It is projected to take about two months for her knee cap to fully heal. Once healed, she will begin physical therapy to fully regain movement in the joint. In the meantime, Mayor is able to walk on her injured leg, but must do so while wearing a cast that stretches from ankle to mid thigh.

Mayor does not currently play any sports, choosing instead to fill her free time with schoolwork; however, she claims that her injury does get in the way of many of her daily activities like walking, sleeping and sitting.

Since returning to school on Feb. 28, Mayor has been taking her time to adjust to the environment, finding solace in the various amenities offered, such as therapy dogs.

“It has been weird going back to school, and I think it is going to take a while to adjust to being back there [at MSD],” Mayor said.

While continuing to recovery physically, Mayor has worked on her mental recovery with the help of others.

“What’s been helping me recover is talking to people and knowing people are there for me,” Mayor said.

Since her injury, Mayor has received the opportunity to meet Florida Gov. Rick Scott in addition to various members of athletic teams, such as the Marlins, Dolphins, Panthers and Heat.