He was shot trying to stop an armed classmate during the STEM School shooting. Now, Josh Jones is focused on helping others.
Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
Josh Jones sometimes reaches down to feel the scars on his legs, the skin still slightly numb to his touch.
It’s the physical reminder of when Jones, then a high school senior, was shot twice in his English class on May 7, 2019, after leaping from his desk to disarm a classmate threatening to open fire.
Jones says he doesn’t think about the shooting inside the STEM School Highlands Ranch all that often. But when he runs his fingers over those scars, he’s reminded of how blessed he is that he’s still here, that he can run and jump and walk through northern Colombia, preaching the gospel of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“I’ve really come to the conclusion that, as terrible as it was, it’s helped my life,” Jones said. “It has helped me realize what I wanted to do and how much I want to help people.”
It’s been one year since two teenage students attempted to shoot up Jones’s English class. One year since 18-year-old Kendrick Castillo was killed as he tackled a shooter, saving his classmates. One year since Jones and his friend Brendan Bialy joined Castillo to take down the shooter. One year since Jones called his mother as he held down a gunman, telling her that he was bleeding, but otherwise okay.
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