Blinded by gunfire, he thinks of the future

Four years ago, Dianira Castellanos was riding the bus with her family in Guatemala, watching the scenery roll by while keeping an eye trained on her sons, who sat near their father as he drove his route. They were riding home to their small town when Castellanos saw several men in street clothes jump from behind the bushes.

Seconds later, the windows shattered as bullets sprayed from all angles. She saw her 8-year-old son, Anibal, fall forward, blood pouring from his face as she tried to drag him from the front seat.

“I never saw him cry,” she said in Spanish, wiping tears from her eyes as Anibal listened peacefully. “He just yelled to me, ‘I’m OK, take care of my brother.’ ”

Anibal took the worst of the shooting, and he now showed the three scars marking where two bullets pierced close to his eyes and one tore through his left arm. Doctors told Castellanos that the bullets had hit Anibal’s optic nerve and he would never see again.

Castellanos refused to give up hope that her son might regain his sight and brought Anibal to the United States to see doctors in Houston and Los Angeles. Although the doctors were not able to provide a cure, she talked to those who helped her realize that although Anibal was blind, he could still have a rich, successful life.

“In Guatemala, I would take him to the park and to church, and people would stare at him and talk badly about him,” she said. “They don’t respect disabled people there and it hurt me. But I see a future for him here.”

This summer, 12-year-old Anibal will attend Camp Bloomfield in Malibu for the third time. Since her son started attending the camp, conducted by the Foundation for the Junior Blind, Castellanos said she has seen him become more independent and outgoing. At home, he has learned how to eat, bathe and dress himself without her help, and he regales her with stories of the campfires, horses and trips to the beach.

Now Anibal moves quickly around the living room of a cousin’s apartment near USC, barely touching the door frames to point out the bathroom, kitchen and bedroom.

At mealtime, he deftly picks onions, which he dislikes, from his food and places them to the side of his plate. He has learned to play the piano, and he can dial the phone numbers of friends he has made at camp.

“After he had the accident, we were together all the time; he was afraid of doing things by himself,” Castellanos said. “Camp helped him learn how to live his life.”

About 12,000 children will go to camp this summer, thanks to $2.1 million raised last year. The annual fund-raising campaign is part of the L.A. Times Family Fund of the McCormick Tribune Foundation, which this year will match the first $1.2 million in contributions at 50 cents on the dollar. Donations are tax-deductible. To make donations by credit card, go to latimes.com/summercamp. To send checks, use the attached coupon. No cash please. Information: (213) 237-5771.

Unless requested otherwise, gifts of $50 or more will be acknowledged in The Times.