A deeply moving video is circulating widely, capturing the moment a teenage girl was transported past her fellow high school peers and local community members as she headed into surgery to donate her organs.
Eighteen-year-old Kimber Mills was among four victims of a shooting that occurred at a party near a highway in Palmerdale, Alabama, on Saturday, October 18.
Sadly, the cheerleader was taken off life support on Tuesday before being honored with a walk through the University of Alabama Hospital.
As a senior at Cleveland High School in Blount County, Alabama, Mills managed to juggle her cheerleading duties with track running, exuding enthusiasm and school spirit. She had aspirations of attending the University of Alabama next year, marking the beginning of her journey to become a nurse.
The young woman was one of four individuals shot during the incident on Saturday. Alongside Mills, an 18-year-old man, a 21-year-old man, and a 20-year-old woman were also injured by gunfire. According to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, 27-year-old Steven Tyler Whitehead arrived at the scene around 12:24 a.m., and after a confrontation, he discharged multiple rounds.
Whitehead faces three counts of attempted murder and is currently being held on a bond of $180,000.
“Kimber found herself in the middle of a dangerous situation,” her sister, Ashley Mills, shared with AL.com, noting that the shooter was unfamiliar to the group and had allegedly approached one of Kimber’s friends, igniting the conflict that led to this heartbreaking outcome.
In an interview with WRBC, Ashley mentioned: “He was attempting to flirt with a girl there and offering her things she didn’t want.”
Mills was quickly taken to the hospital, but her family was informed that her injuries were too grave for her to survive. They made the compassionate choice to fulfill her desire to be an organ donor.
“She has suffered too much trauma to her brain,” Ashley explained. “She is breathing independently with the help of a breathing machine… We have placed her on a DNR because we don’t want to cause her any more pain in trying to revive her. We’ve already arranged for her to be an organ donor, as that was her wish.”
Videos of Mills’ ‘final walk’ have been shared online, depicting students and local community members gathering in the hospital corridors to pay their last tributes.
Ashley shared with the Daily Mail that her sister’s heart was donated to a seven-year-old boy in Ohio, while her lungs were allocated to a woman in New York.
According to his brother Shane, Silas McCay, 21, another victim shot at the party, was able to walk behind Kimber as she was taken to surgery.
Shane disclosed that Silas had been ‘shot ten times’, yet he is miraculously out of bed and can now walk. Another victim of the shooting is still hospitalized.
In an interview with CBS, Shane described Mills’ trip to the operating room as ‘emotional’, stating: “As soon as she turned that corner, the entire hallway was in tears. It was clear she was deeply loved by the whole community.”
Rest in peace, Kimber Mills.
