Hailed as a hero for his role in leading seven people away from danger - after being seriously wounded himself - a Western New York native and Army officer was honored Monday for his actions in a 2014 multiple shooting at Fort Hood, Texas.
Major Patrick Miller, a native of Allegany, was shot in the abdomen during the April 2014 incident. While wounded, though, he led others to safety.
Four people, including the gunman, died in the gunfire. Major Miller has spent the past year recovering from his wounds.
"I'm getting stronger every day," he said. "I'm gaining all my weight back and strength back from all the surgeries in the previous year."
On Monday, Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) met face-to-face with Major Miller and thanked him for his actions at Fort Hood. Schumer advised Miller that his tale was entered into the Congressional Record.
"We all know in that tragic shooting several were killed, others were wounded," said Schumer. "You can be sure there are people alive today because of this Western New Yorker's bravery."
Miller and his wife will move to Hawaii, where he will work for the next three years as a chief of resource management at the Tripler Army Medical Center on the island of Oahu.
"I'm just taking it a day at a time, mentally. I've surrounded myself with a tremendous wife and our family," Miller said. "We're all there for one another so we continue to heal psychologically every day."
