x
Breaking News
More () »

Father of teen killed in STEM school shooting said he received a phone call from President Trump

"This was totally unexpected," John Castillo wrote in a Facebook post.

COLORADO, USA — It's not every day you receive a phone call from the President.

And yet that's the situation in which John Castillo found himself Friday night, according to a post on Facebook.

Castillo, the father of Kendrick Castillo, the 18-year-old STEM School Highlands Ranch student who died protecting his fellow students during the May 2019 shooting at that school, said he couldn't believe what happened.

In the post, Castillo said his phone rang Friday night and a woman asked if he was Mr. Castillo and if it was okay if President Trump talked with him.

"President Trump gets on the phone and the President offered his condolences for our loss of Kendrick on May 7th at the Stem School shooting and the sacrifice Kendrick made to save others on that day," Castillo wrote in the post.

Castillo went on to say Trump then invited him to Washington, D.C. and NASA for a visit.

"This was totally unexpected," Castillo wrote.

Castillo said he and his wife had just finished dinner after visiting his son at the cemetery when he got the call.

He said he had just been at Trump's rally in Colorado Springs the night before, where he had received VIP tickets.

RELATED: Trump addresses a packed arena at 'Keep America Great' rally in Colorado Springs

Kendrick Castillo has been praised as a hero for joining other classmates to rush one of the gunmen in the shooting.

RELATED: 'Nobody is a winner out of this': Younger STEM School shooting suspect pleads guilty to 17 counts

RELATED: Why armed STEM School guard won't be charged for having gun on campus

RELATED: Kendrick Castillo honored at Colorado Avalanche game

Eight other students were also shot, two of them by a private security guard who helped detain one of the teen suspects.

Two teenagers were charged after the shooting. One of them has already pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing. The other is scheduled to go on trial in May.

SUGGESTED VIDEOS | Local stories from 9NEWS 

 

Before You Leave, Check This Out