CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- It's good news for the Wilder family and the local community that has stepped up to support a young musician.
Rylan Wilder, the 15-year-old musician severely wounded last month in a high-profile shooting, is out of the hospital and on the road to recovery, according to his parents.
In a Dec. 7 update to the GoFundMe page for the musician's medical bills, father Tom Wilder said his son was able to go home Dec. 5 after seven surgeries, with the latest one being a skin graft to cover the wound on the arm with skin taken from his thigh.
"Throughout this entire experience, Rylan has been extremely resilient and goal-oriented, which we think is what enabled us to go home — originally they predicted we would be in the hospital 6-10 weeks," Tom Wilder said. "Thank you to all who have reached out to us. It has been really encouraging to have so many people keeping us in their thoughts and prayers. We are so appreciative."
Rylan Wilder was working as an intern at UpBeat Music and Arts, 4318 W. Irving Park Road, when he was shot in the abdomen and arm as police fired at bank robbery suspect Christopher Willis, who had been chased from Des Plaines in a stolen car on Nov. 19.
The family's GoFundMe page has continued to grow since it began Nov. 24, receiving over a million donors. It has currently raised over $60,000 of its $75,000 goal.
fembed ftype="iframe" class="scribd_iframe_embed" title="Family Of Boy Shot In Irving Park Gun Battle File Lawsuit" src="https://wbbm780.radio.com/%7Bprotocol%7Ds%3A//www%7B%2A%7Dscribd%7B%2A%7Dcom/embeds/436846006/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&access_key=key-GU7u7pw18Vn8bkPyhyUy&show_recommendations=true" data-auto-height="false" data-aspect-ratio="0{*}7729220222793488" scrolling="no" id="doc_48900" width="100%" height="600" frameborder="no" provider="scribd"]
Wilder's parents filed a lawsuit and said they want answers from police about what happened.
In a Nov. 25 press conference announcing the suit, mother Lucia Morales said her son suffered a devastating injury to his inner forearm and does not know if he’ll ever be able to play guitar again. Rylan Wilder's band was one of the bands that played at Riotfest this year. Morales said her son is the youngest person to have ever played at Riotfest.