A ten year veteran of the Army is recovering in the hospital today after being shot 7 times while attempting to stop the shooting at a community college in Oregon.
Chris Mintz is being hailed as a hero after he attempted to block the shooter from entering the classroom he was in and lunging toward him during yesterday's attack.
"We know he tried to protect some people," Mintz's aunt, Sheila Brown, told NBC News. "We were told he did heroic things to protect some people."
"He was on the wrestling team, and he's done cage-fighting, so it does not surprise me that he would act heroically."
Mintz's injuries are severe but he is is currently stable and conscious. Family members credited his strength with pulling him through the violence. "He could have very easily died," Chris's other aunt, Wanda Mintz, told Fox 8. "I really think that if he wasn't such a strong, young guy, he may have died."
Mintz has been in and out of surgery since the attack and will require more surgery as his recovery progresses. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help cover the costs of his recovery.