Twenty-two days after being shot five times — including one bullet which zipped into and out of her neck — Charlene Slaugh stood up and offered her wheelchair to her favorite nurse just before she left the hospital to finally go home.

Being wheeled around is not her style.

Slaugh, 35, was very nearly victim No. 6 in Colorado Springs’ Club Q mass shooting Nov. 19.

Instead, she pulled through and made good on the promise she made after surgery that she would walk out the front door of the hospital “with my head held high.”

On the night of the shooting, Charlene Slaugh’s 34-year-old brother James and his boyfriend, Jancarlos Dell Valle, also 34, took her to Club Q to get her mind off of a recent break-up. As they were packing up to leave for home, a large man dressed in tactical gear walked through the door and shot them at close range.

Charlene Slaugh was shot five times. James took a bullet to his right arm and Dell Valle was hit in the leg.

The Slaughs lost their mother, Cece, to COVID in the last year. Their family belongs to a tight-knit community in Colorado Springs partly because they run the Taste of Brasil restaurant. Six years ago, when Slaugh needed a place to stay, Tina Siegfried offered up a room in her home. The two became fast friends.

The following words provide an inside look at Charlene Slaugh’s story through portions of a tribute letter written by Siegfried, and published by the Denver Gazette.

I nicknamed Charlene Slaugh “Brilliance” because “she shines brighter than any star in the sky.”

She has been there for me through my darkest season and the many amazing events we have shared together. Her smile lights up the room and she can cheer you up with her keen sense of realism and optimism. It is no wonder why she has so many friends who have now stepped up to help her. 

Charlene woke Nov. 20 with multiple bullet wounds from an A15-style rifle from only a short distance away and was one of the first to be shot. By the time she reached the operating room, she had already lost half her blood and nearly didn’t make it, worrying her surgeons and nurses a few times over the night.

While she was fighting for her life, the criminal assailant was also in the Intensive Care Unit at the same hospital, awaiting to be taken to the county jail, CJC (Criminal Justice Center), by officers from the Colorado Springs Police Department. The first several hours after Charlene was recovering from her first of several surgeries the hospital was on lockdown and visitors were not allowed due to hospital protocol to prevent consequential retaliation.

Charlene immediately reached for her phone that was lying next to her. Unfortunately, she couldn’t move her arm and told herself, “Well this arm doesn’t work, let’s try the other one.” She remembers being connected to the CSPD just a few minutes before midnight and most likely the first caller for help.

I don’t have to ask Charlene about how she feels about the shooter, I know she feels sorry for him and everyone and anyone struggling with depression, anxiety, shame, guilt, fear, or hurt.

In a recent Facebook post, Charlene thanked people for their support. “I want to say I appreciate all of you for wishing me well and for keeping in your hearts. You all have contributed to this healing journey and have made me feel so loved.”

Siegfried said Slaugh is getting stronger every day, exercising to get her mobility back and treating her wounds. Brazilian food prepared by her two aunts who flew to Colorado from South America were a critical part of her healing.

Those wanting to help Charlene and her family can visit her GoFundMe.com page.