My name is Nico, and I’m a respiratory therapist living in Denver.

On 4/3/26, I was the victim of a random, unprovoked shooting in downtown Denver near 18th and Stout. A man in the passenger seat of an SUV was aggressively harassing and threatening random people on the sidewalk. I stopped briefly and watched, trying to understand what was happening. When he made eye contact with me, everything changed.

He got out of the vehicle, pulled out a gun, and began coming toward me. I told him I didn’t want any problems and that I was just trying to go meet my friends. He threatened to find me later and kill me, then got back in the car and drove off.

A few blocks later, while I was stopped at a red light, that same vehicle pulled up next to me. He was already holding the gun. I remember him yelling something about a “getting a headshot,” but I couldn’t fully process it because of what happened immediately after. I hear him tell the driver to “start driving, go, go, go!”

He leaned out of the window, aimed directly at my face from less than a car’s length away, and fired.

At first, I didn’t feel pain. I just felt a shockwave and intense vibrating sensation through my chest. Then I started coughing up large amounts of bright red blood. I could hear the blood filling my lungs with every breath. As a respiratory therapist, I knew exactly what that meant, and I genuinely believed I was about to die right there on the street.

I tried to call 911, but my right arm wouldn’t move at all. It was completely limp. I tried using my left hand, but my phone was covered in blood and wouldn’t respond. I saw a couple in Tesla pull up to the red light. I went up to the car and begged them to call for help, telling them I had just been shot. They rolled up their windows and drove away, leaving me alone in the street.

At that point, I became extremely dizzy and sat down on the sidewalk. I remember thinking, very clearly, “So, this is it? This is where I’m going to die? On the sidewalk with no one around to help. I don’t get to say goodbye to my loved ones… I don’t get a choice in this.”

I lost consciousness for a short time. When I came to, a homeless man from earlier who witnessed the shooting came back and was kneeling next to me, applying pressure to my neck with his hands covered in my blood. He helped me clean my phone enough to call 911. That man saved my life.

Paramedics arrived quickly and found me in critical condition with dangerously low blood pressure. I was taken to Denver Health, where the team worked to stabilize me. Because of them, I survived.

I am now dealing with the aftermath of this attack, including nerve damage that has significantly affected the use of my right arm, ongoing medical care, and time away from work. As a healthcare worker, it’s surreal and difficult to suddenly be on the other side of this. The physical, emotional, and financial impact has been overwhelming.

I am raising funds to help cover medical expenses, rehabilitation, and basic living costs while I focus on recovery and regaining function.

If you’re able to donate or even just share this, it truly means more than I can express. Thank you for taking the time to read my story.