Jane Richard: Boston Marathon bombing survivor, 17, who lost leg in massacre, reflects on life in first interview since 2013 attack
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS: Jane Richard, a 17-year-old girl, who lost her left leg below the knee during the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing when she was just seven years old, gave her first interview to the Boston Globe a decade after the attack. “I think about what happened every time I put my leg on,” the teen shared while saying that she still remembers the fateful day of April 15, 2013.
Richard said she also remembers how she frantically searched for her father amid the bombing before passing out as well as how she woke up in an ambulance to find her leg nearly gone and endured 14 surgeries within a span of 39 days. However, the teen said she no longer remembers her then-eight-year-old brother, Martin, the youngest of the three victims who lost their lives in the massacre. “It makes me sad to say I can’t really remember him. But I’m almost grateful, because if I had more memories, it might be more painful,” she told the publication. Similarly, Richard also does not remember the time when she was able to walk without needing a prosthetic.
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Jane Richard’s family stood feet away from Boston Marathon bombing attacker
Jane Richard’s family unknowingly stood feet away from terrorist Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, one of the two brothers who planted two homemade pressure cooker bombs, which detonated during the annual Boston Marathon on April 15, 2023, killing three people and leaving hundreds injured. Richard, then seven, lost her eight-year-old brother and her left leg below the knee during the massacre. Her father now suffers from tinnitus and her mother lost sight in her right eye. Her elder brother, Henry, now-21-years-old, was the only one to escape the attack physically unscathed.
In an interview with the Boston Globe, Richard said she remembers the deadly massacre every time she puts on her prosthesis to walk. Although the teen said she no longer remembers her late brother, Martin, she has gotten a “peace” tattoo in his handwriting on her wrist. Richard also told the publication that her family has kept Martin alive through their stories and said she learned a lot about her brother through their mother, Denise, who keeps talking about Martin every day.
Richard shared that her parents also told her about the time she was in the hospital in the wake of the bombing. She has been told that she was in the ICU at Boston's Children's Hospital due to a medically-induced coma for two weeks and that her elder brother, Henry, would often read her favorite Elephant & Piggie books with a fake Southern accent at the time. Her parents also told her how CNN's Anderson Cooper sent her a teddy bear but she did not know who he was and asked the nurses, “Who’s Anderson Cooper? I don’t know anyone named Anderson Cooper.”
The teen’s elder brother, who now lives in Manhattan, ran at the Boston Marathon last year and is also preparing to run in the race again this year. He will reportedly run with the family's team, MR8, which raised millions for the Martin Richard Foundation. This will also be the last year that the Richard family will field a team, the Boston Globe reported.
‘I’m ready to start my own story’
In her interview with the outlet, Richard said that after ten years of the massacre, she is finally ready to let go of being the symbol of Boston Strong, a movement that emerged in the aftermath of the tragedy, even though it will always be a part of who she is. “Obviously this is always going to be a part of who I am. I’m still going to be grieving, because you don’t stop grieving something like this. But I’m ready to start my own story,” the teen stated.
The 17-year-old currently manages the boys’ baseball team and is running for student body president. “Jane Richard, 2024 — for president. Or queen of the world,” she joked. The teen is also focusing on her music and has already sung the National Anthem twice at Fenway Park. Speaking about her future plans, Richard said that she is considering a career in journalism or politics. She is also planning to attend college like Henry, who studies business management at Pace University.
Richard is also likely to have another surgery on her leg after a recent infection but said that she would be facing the situation with bravery similar to how she did when she was seven years old. Despite the 2013 tragedy, the teen still enjoys watching the Boston Marathon and cheering for her elder brother. “If I let what happened to me 10 years ago take the fun out of something that I once loved, I would be letting my younger self down,” she said. “I love seeing everyone out there, and it brings me joy, which is probably the complete opposite of what everyone would expect,” Richard concluded.