Help Shooting Victim Recover

Early on the morning of October 1st, I received a call from my brother telling me that he had been shot at work.

My brother, Evan Jayson Smith, who we all call Jayson, lives just outside Lexington, KY in the small town of Berea.

Jayson is 25 and was working as security at a popular downtown Lexington bar while finishing an online degree in computer science.

At about 1:30 AM on October 1st, a fight broke out on the street outside the bar, and some of those people came inside when the police arrived. Jayson saw one young man pull a weapon and moved to disarm him.

He was shot in the process. The bullet entered his right bicep, fractured his right shoulder blade, then traveled up and broke the C3 vertebrae in his neck. It damaged the ligament between vertebrae C1 and C2, and bruised his spinal cord before exiting just below his left ear. Police arrested the shooter and he is currently in jail.

When our mom arrived in Kentucky on October 2nd, Jayson couldn’t feel his face and was paralyzed from the neck down due to bruising of the spinal cord and ligaments. Fortunately, this paralysis is actively resolving. He is beginning to regain use of his limbs, can stand for a few minutes at a time, and is beginning to walk.

Police and the bar owner say it is clear from the video footage that Jayson saved many lives through his actions.

As of today, he’s been in the hospital 32 days.

I’ve started this GoFundMe because his recovery could take up to 24 months, and the medical team is unsure what the final outcome will be. He and our dad live in the same town, so he has some help, but he will need help covering bills and living expenses, etc until he is back on his feet.

It appears he will be going home early next week, with nursing care and four hours of physical and occupational therapy a day, four days a week. He will also receive trauma counseling.

Everyone who has seen the video of the incident says that Jayson did not hesitate to put himself in harm's way to protect others. Lexington PD says he’s a hero.

https://www.wtvq.com/lexington-bartender-shot-breaking-up-fight/

https://www.wkyt.com/2023/10/03/father-lexington-shooting-victim-says-son-risked-his-life-save-others/