Four months after shooting, Castaldo, 17, leaves hospital

By Tanya Sierra Del Real
Denver Rocky Mountain News Staff Writer

His body is paralyzed, but his spirit remains strong.

Four months after his body was riddled with bullets, a grinning Richard Castaldo said good-bye to Craig Hospital on Friday and wheeled away.

He was the last Columbine High School student to be released from the hospital.

"I'm glad to go home," Castaldo said in a news conference. He admitted to being a little nervous about the challenges that lie ahead.

Castaldo said he will return to school as a senior in a few weeks. He will take some time off to relax at home and acclimate to living outside a medical environment.

His list of things to do includes getting involved in medical research and gun-control issues, promoting handicap accessibility and advocating better enforcement of the law.

However, he disagrees with censorship. He says blaming song lyrics and violent movies is not the answer.

Before he left the hospital Friday, Castaldo thanked those who saved his life and those who sent cards and gifts.

When the 17-year-old was transferred to Craig from Swedish Medical Center in late May, he could not sit up without passing out. Nor could he shower or dress himself.

Today, "he's able to pop wheelies and go up and down curbs," said Sharon Blackburn, one of Richard's physical therapists.

"It's nice to talk to other people who have the same injuries as you do," Castaldo said. "It helps you get through a lot."

The teen will work with a hand specialist to correct nerve damage.

Castaldo will live with his father, Rick, in Denver until his home with his mother and stepfather, Connie and Craig Michalik, is renovated to accommodate his wheelchair.

As his mother talked lovingly about him, Castaldo smiled and put his head down.

"I'm proud of him; he's a very, very strong person," Connie Michalik said. "He has really become wise beyond his years."

Castaldo was eating lunch on the Columbine High lawn April 20 with friend Rachel Scott, when Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold unloaded bombs and bullets April 20. Scott was killed.

At least one bullet hit his spinal cord; several others pierced his body. Since then, Castaldo has undergone seven surgeries. Ten days after he was shot, Castaldo's father was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease and had to have chemotherapy and radiation treatments.

But Richard Castaldo never faltered. He remained positive and became known at Craig for pulling pranks.

"Richard has been an inspiration to the other patients in the hospital and to the staff and has a great sense of humor," hospital spokesman Kenny Hosack said.

Blackburn said because Castaldo has a dry sense of humor, she had to pay attention to his eyes. If they were twinkling, he was "pulling the wool over her eyes."

"This guy is gonna go places. He has more perseverance than a lot of adults I know," she said.