Wounded Green Beret Meets Miracle Maker Who Saved His Life

US Veteran Reunites With the Soldier Who Saved His Life
ABC News
By SARAH KUNIN
GOOD MORNING AMERICA
Nov 11, 2014

"There was a higher power definitely that day that was looking out for us,” said Wanner, also a father of three.

Sean Clifton, left, and Mark Wanner served together in combat in Afghanistan.

Courtesy Sean Clifton and Mark Wanner

The friendship between U.S. Army Master Sgt. Sean Clifton and Sgt. First Class Mark Wanner is one born on the battlefield.

The pair, both members of the Green Berets, the elite division of the U.S. Army Special Forces, were with their troops in Afghanistan on May 31, 2009, when their lives would change forever.

"We targeted a Taliban commander,” Wanner recalled to ABC News’ Michael Strahan, who brought the two soldiers together this month in New York City to share their story.

“We knew that he was there that day and we rolled out and we ran into a hornet's nest, really,” Wanner, of South Dakota, said. “I round the corner. That's when Sean kicked the door and a guy point blank just took his AK and shot right up Sean.”

“And he's like, ‘Help. Help me.’ I'm like seeing his eyes are, like, just big…and then he collapsed down,” Wanner said.

Clifton was gravely wounded in the attack. He recalls thinking of his wife and three kids as he waited for help.

As Clifton lay bleeding and close to his last breath, Wanner, a medic, took charge. He dove through bullets to treat his friend’s wounds and convinced a medevac pilot to defy orders and land the helicopter inside the firefight.

It was then that Wanner and the medics discovered a miracle. A hidden bullet was lodged beneath Clifton’s armor, just millimeters away from what would have been a fatal shot.
read more here