Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 18, 1995 TAG: 9501180051
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Cristina Pruitt returned to her Latin class Tuesday and immediately began taking notes, just like her classmates at Patrick Henry High School.
Like most students, she toted a bookbag as she crossed the Patrick Henry High School campus.
Cristina was eager to get to her classes; she said she wanted to get back into her regular routine as quickly as possible.
But she waited briefly as Principal Elizabeth Lee, classmates, friends and her fellow cheerleaders welcomed her back with balloons, cards and hugs.
Cristina, 16, was severely burned in a fire on Dec. 21 in Franklin County that claimed the life of her mother, two sisters and a brother.
Few expected her to return to school so soon after she jumped from the second story of the house to escape the flames. She was burned on her face and hands.
"Doctors are amazed at how fast she is recovering. She is improving so fast," said her father, Bill. He said the doctors are optimistic that she will make a good recovery.
Originally, doctors estimated that Cristina would be at the University of Virginia burn center for six weeks, but she got out in half that time.
"She has the determination to get well. I can see that in her," Lee said. "She is a strong child."
Emotionally, Cristina seems to be holding up, her father said.
"I believe this will help her, if she is with her friends in school," he said.
Cristina accepted the words of comfort from students and teachers, but she didn't want to dwell on her ordeal.
Her hands were burned so badly that she must wear a special type of compression gloves for one to two years to ensure that they heal properly, said her father.
She also will have to return to the UVa burn center weekly so doctors can monitor her condition and perform more surgery. She already has had skin grafts on her hands.
Despite the burns and gloves, Cristina, a junior, can write and take notes in her classes.
Michael Andrews, Cristina's Latin teacher, and her classmates greeted her as she was trailed by cameras and reporters.
Many of Cristina's friends visited her while she was in the hospital in Charlottesville. She said they have given her strong emotional support.
Everywhere she went on the school campus Tuesday, there was someone to greet her.
She also was taken to the school's student health center, where she will get help in applying medication to her facial burns, which are beginning to heal.
Her father said the burns have been healing rapidly since the bandages were removed from her face. While the bandages were on, he said, it was difficult to determine the extent of the burns.
Lee assured Cristina and her father that the school will do everything that it can to make sure she is comfortable and able to resume her regular schedule.
Cristina had been commuting to Patrick Henry High from Franklin County, where she was living with her mother, sisters and brother. Now she will live with her father in the Roanoke Valley.
by CNB