x
Breaking News
More () »

Baby wears colostomy bag, recovers after shooting that killed dad

NEW ORLEANS - It's been nearly two weeks since five-month-old Kelvin Moses was rushed to the hospital for life-saving surgery from bullet wounds.

The child was in the car in an Algiers apartment complex, when a gunman opened fire, killing his father and wounding a family friend.

The headlines are over. The crime scene is long gone, and the police are still investigating yet another shooting in the city. But there is another side to those stories we see too often. What happens when the victims, especially a baby, go home.

"I have to be strong for him. I don't want him to see me cry and be sad all the time," said Keyana Morris, 25.

Morris says when she plays a video of her late boyfriend, Lenord Moses, their five-month-old son Kelvin Moses cries.

"If I show him videos of them playing he'll cry. And like for the funeral, everybody had shirts and stuff made. He was pointing at the shirts, grabbing at the shirts, like he knew exactly who was on that shirt."

After surgery at the UMC Trauma Center, then nearly a week at Children's Hospital, Kelvin is home. The bullet wounds are still healing. Bullet fragments are still in his head. Because of the damage to his intestines, he has a colostomy. Instead of soiled diapers, Keyana now changes his ostomy bag. That makes her both angry and sad for her innocent child.

"I don't want to leave his side at all, like I'm not trusting nobody with taking it off and putting it back on," said Morris.

So she's taking time off from her two restaurant jobs to be his caretaker. She and Kelvin have left the home they shared with Lenord as a family.

"It still feels unreal like, I still kind of don't believe it even though I did see him Saturday at his funeral. But it still doesn't feel real,"

She says doctors tell her that they hope one day Kelvin's wounds will fully heal and the colostomy can be reversed. But even if his health is back to normal, she knows her family never will be.

"Yeah, he was a great dad. He really was," said Morris, who added that she would never let him forget his father.

She has a message to all the complete strangers who grabbed Kelvin that horrible night, comforting him and putting pressure on his wounds to save him from bleeding to death.

"I'm grateful for everyone helping him. I really am. Even when it was time for me to go to the hospital at the scene, like strangers picked me up to go. I was grateful for that."

The little boy has Medicaid for his medical bills but his mother will be out of work as his caretaker for months, or as much a year. If you'd like to help:  

https://www.crowdrise.com/kelvins-fund/fundraiser/keedysweetiemorris

Before You Leave, Check This Out