LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Ocean Robertson is celebrating her fifth birthday after she survived a deadly shooting that took her mother's life in 2020. Sherry Ancrum, Ocean's grandmother, has been taking care of her since the shooting.
Ocean was 5-months-old when the car she was in with her mother was shot at 23 times. Her mom, Molly was killed and one of those bullets went through the right side of Ocean’s head and traveled down her body before exiting through her back.
“Before it [the bullet] went out, it did a lot of damage,” Ancrum said while showing the entry and exit wound scars.
Ocean remains on a feeding tube, which is why she can’t enjoy any of that birthday cake. Fluid remains on her brain, which is something doctors don’t want to drain at this point. Her vision remains seriously impaired in both eyes, and her left arm was rendered useless after having had two strokes. Her left leg, which also doesn’t function properly, was just operated on last month.
“The cast can come off later this month, if it’s healing the way they want,” Ancrum said. “What we're working on is hopefully to get her to walk."
Sherry said she will try to send Ocean to kindergarten this fall for two days a week, and she plans on attending until Ocean and the teachers seem comfortable with being left alone.
“It can be hard to deal with Ocean because she can be very aggressive, so I don’t want her to have a problem with that,” Ancrum explained.
“She gets into stuff like any kid,” Sherry said. “She’s doing good from where she came from, but we know she’ll never be good."
But she’s here, she’s 5 years old now, and she’s continuing to defy the odds every single day.
