Nicole’s family looks forward to moving on

After laying their daughter to rest on Saturday, the family of stray bullet victim Stephanie Nicole Ella are now setting their sights on a difficult but much-needed task: Moving on.

Jay Ella, Nicole’s father, said that the family has not had a good night’s rest since New Year’s Eve when Nicole was hit by a stray bullet as they were watching fireworks outside their house in Barangay (village) 185, Malaria, Caloocan City.

“Maybe we will be able to rest… even for at least a day,” Jay said. “Then we plan to pay a visit to the INA Foundation [office] to help us recover from what happened.”

Jay was referring to the Inang Naulila sa Anak (INA) Foundation in Quezon City which gives therapy to parents, especially mothers, to help them overcome the grief they have experienced in losing a child.

“I know my wife is finding it difficult to recover from this incident,” Jay said, noting that his wife, Ellaine, has found it hard to come to terms with the tragedy.

Despite the stress the family encountered during Nicole’s wake, Jay said life still felt quite normal because his daughter was with them physically.

“What’s missing, though, is the laughter and joy,” he said.

“I think that’s what we will really miss about her.”

After having laid Nicole to rest, Jay has one plea to the public.

“I hope they continue to follow the case and wait for the results. I hope she won’t be forgotten,” he said.

Police said Nicole, a 7-year-old grade one pupil, was hit by a bullet which was fired about 50 meters away from where she stood, a distance roughly equivalent to the length of an Olympic-sized pool or half a football pitch.

With the bullet still lodged in her head, Nicole fought for her survival for two days at East Avenue Medical Center in Quezon City.

However, after eight cardiac arrests, doctors pronounced her dead on the afternoon of Jan. 2.

Nicole was buried on Saturday in Norzagaray, Bulacan, with her death spurring debates on tighter gun control and even a total gun ban.