Las Vegas Shooting Victim Tina Frost To Spend Holidays At Home

CROFTON, MD — After a couple of weeks at a rehabilitation center, Tina Frost, the 2008 Arundel High School graduate and Crofton native who was shot Oct. 1 at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas, is now at home for the holidays. She is recovering from facial and brain surgery done last month at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, but has improved enough to continue her therapy as an outpatient, her family says.

Frost, 27, is a 2008 graduate of Arundel High School. She was shot in the right eye, which doctors removed in surgery in Las Vegas. She had traveled to the country music festival with her boyfriend, Austin, from San Diego, where she works for an accounting firm.

On Sunday, the family posted on Facebook that Frost had made another milestone when she walked out of the inpatient rehabilitation hospital late last week, and will enjoy her family and friends and some normalcy.

"We will continue therapies on an outpatient basis and she continues to get a lil stronger and better every day," the family wrote on the TinaTough Facebook page. "We hope you all have a wonderful holiday season as we are planning to and have a lot to celebrate and be thankful for."

And while the family appreciates all the support from the community, Tina doesn’t like being the center of attention, they said in a plea to respect her privacy and feelings.

Frost's family shared on its GoFundMe page that she left the hospital on Nov. 28 and was at a rehabilitation center where she began even more intense and focused therapies. "To all of our family, friends, supporters and followers, we thank you so much for your endless support and prayers," the family said.

To help with expenses tied to her lengthy hospital stay, a birthday fundraiser held Nov. 30 at the Gambrills Greene Turtle brought in more than $6,000 for her medical trust, the family said on Facebook. Next up is a fundraiser at Grotto Pizza, 2404 Brandermill Blvd. in Gambrills, from 4 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 14. One of the organizers, Sarah Bonney, tells Patch that 20 percent of all checks will go directly to Frost and her medical expenses. Go to Grotto Pizza.com and print the voucher.

Her family posted on their GoFundMe page Nov. 21 that surgery to reconstruct Frost's forehead has constricted her brain and "her emotions are getting the best of her, and quite honestly, us as well. Her physical, occupational and psychological therapies have slowed down significantly, but her speech therapy is still going well."

Frost was flown on a medical transport jet and admitted to Johns Hopkins Oct. 15 to continue her recovery close to her family, her mother, Mary Watson Moreland, wrote on a GoFundMe page set up to "cover all expenses related to this tragic event such as traveling, food, hotels, missed work, and caring for Tina."

On Oct. 19 Frost underwent a second surgery to help reconstruct her skull and help prevent infection. After fevers and other complications, her recovery is picking up speed and she is out of intensive care, says the page. Family members noted Frost had started to write on a whiteboard, tries to walk on her own, and now that she's in a private room with its own bath, "likes jumping out of bed on her own, forcing us and the nurses to scramble to assist."

She took her first steps on Oct. 13, her family said.

By early November she had baked cookies, kicked and thrown a rubber ball, walked the halls without assistance, spoken more words and began eating on her own and painted an eyepatch to wear, the family said online.

"Thank you for the overwhelming support and especially the prayers that have been lifted for Tina. We hope you understand that we still are not ready for a lot of visitors, only close family and friends, as Tina always tries to be her polite and sweet self, but it truly exhausts her. Please continue to pray in the days ahead and we'll continue to keep you posted every few days."

In another sign of progress, Frost passed a soccer ball back and forth with her father while standing; the area where she was shot affects balance, so the soccer display could be another good sign.

Occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech therapy are all working with

To date, $607,520 has been donated on the GoFundMe site to help Frost with medical expenses. Watch for upcoming fundraisers on the Tina Tough Facebook page.

Image of Tina Frost via GoFundMe