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Duke Divinity student forgives person who shot him, hopes to become voice for others

A Duke University Divinity School student who was hospitalized for almost four weeks after being wounded in a drive-by shooting last month says he is relying on his faith as he continues a long journey to recovery.

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By
Sarah Krueger
, WRAL Durham reporter
DURHAM, N.C. — A Duke University Divinity School student who was hospitalized for almost four weeks after being wounded in a drive-by shooting last month says he is relying on his faith as he continues a long journey to recovery.
Blaine Thomas, 23, was outside his home on Crest Street in Durham on July 24, helping a neighbor who had locked his keys in his car, when he was shot in the abdomen.

"I was in the wrong place at the wrong time," Thomas said.

He spent four days in the intensive care unit at Duke University Hospital and then 22 more in recovery after undergoing three surgeries to repair damage to his stomach, kidney and spleen. He was released from the hospital on Aug. 19.

"I kind of thought, when I got out of the hospital, things would get easier. That hasn’t always been the case," he said. "It’s a slow, slow recovery."

Thomas said that he doubts he would have made it through the ordeal without his faith.

"I don’t believe that God had this in his plan," he said of the shooting. "But I do believe that, with how close I was to the hospital when the incident occurred to the doctors who were there, that God was in this situation the whole time."

Others also have provided him strength during his recovery, he said, from chaplains he knows at the hospital from his time as a chaplain intern to people who have written to him on social media or responded to a GoFundMe account that has already raised about $64,000 for his medical expenses.

"On days when I was weak, which was a lot, I would lean on others and just allow them to kind of fight for me," he said. "To get on and just see all the support from people I know and love and am close with and other people that I’ve never met in my life and who care and are just trying to help another human being, that, to me, shows a phenomenal message of hope."

Instead of sending money, he encouraged people who want to support him to donate blood, noting that he needed numerous pints of blood during his first surgery the night of the shooting.

"I was able to sit here and tell my story because of a blood bank," he said.

Thomas said he now wants to use the shooting to inspire others.

"It’s hard to go through an event like this and not see the world a little different," he said. "I know there will be situations and opportunities later where I can hopefully provide care, support, advocacy for others."

He said he doesn't see himself as a victim – he cringes at the word – and wants others to likewise forgo that label.

"Just recognizing you’re not just a victim, you’re a human," he said when asked about what he wants to convey to others.

Durham police have released few details about their investigation of the shooting, saying only that they don't believe Thomas was the intended target.

Thomas said he's already forgiven the shooter, and he doesn't care if the person is arrested.

"I think, initially, there was anger, but I think what followed next was sadness, and not just for the incident, but for the individual," he said. "I realize we live in a broken and kind of dark world, and there sometimes doesn’t seem like there is a whole lot of hope.

"More than anything, I just feel sorry, and I hope that that individual, whoever they are, wherever they are, can find peace," he added. "Gun violence is a really big issue everywhere and especially here in Durham. I just pray that maybe that individual can become part of the solution and not the issue."

Thomas is in the second year of a three-year master's degree program at the Divinity School, and he said he eventually wants to become a pastor or a chaplain. Doctors have told him he should make a full recovery in six months to a year.

"There’s going to be something greater, something that comes out of this, and I can only sit back and wait for it," he said.

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