Chris Mintz was shot seven times at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. (Facebook)
An Army veteran was shot seven times while charging at the Umpqua Community College gunman Thursday morning, his family says.
Chris Mintz, 30, survived the shooting at the Roseburg, Oregon, college with serious injuries. The gunman, Chris Harper Mercer, 26, killed nine people and wounded Mintz and nine others before he was fatally shot during a gun fight with police.
Mintz was shot in the upper back, left hand, abdomen and each leg, his family told the Winston-Salem Journal, but he is in stable condition.
More than $400,000 has been raised for Mintz on a GoFundMe page.
Here’s what you need to know about Mintz:
1. He Moved to Oregon After Serving in the Army for 10 Years
Mintz served in the Army for 10 years, his family says. (Facebook)
Chris Mintz moved to Oregon a few years ago after serving in the Army, where he was based at Fort Lewis in Washington state and was deployed overseas, his cousin, Derek Bourgeois, told The Daily Beast.
Originally from Randleman, North Carolina, Mintz is living in Oregon to raise his son and is in his second year at Umpqua Community College. He also fought as an amateur mixed martial arts fighter in Oregon. Bourgeois said he isn’t surprised his cousin stood in front of the shooter.
“It sounds like something he would do,” Bourgeois he told The Daily Beast.
A friend posted on Mintz’s Facebook page for him, saying, “This is Chris’s friend, Chris asked me to thank everyone for their support, he is grateful and keeping our community and all victims in his thoughts.”
2. His Family Says He Is Going to Have to Learn to Walk Again
Mintz underwent surgery for leg injuries on Thursday, his cousin said on Facebook. He was shot five times, but the bullets missed vital organs, his cousin, Derek Bourgeois, said on Facebook.
“He is very upset that people had to die and he wishes that he could have saved everyone. That was about all he was able to get out before he broke down. Hang in there brother,” Bourgeois said in a Facebook post after talking with Mintz.
“He could have very easily died,” Wanda Mintz, Chris’ aunt, told My Fox 8. “I really think that if he wasn’t such a strong, young guy, he may have died.”
3. He Was Celebrating His Son’s 6th Birthday on Thursday
(Facebook)
Mintz was celebrating his son’s sixth birthday on Thursday. He posted on Facebook about it just hours before the shooting.
His family told CBS This Morning that after he was shot, he looked up at the gunman and said “it’s my son’s birthday today,” and was shot again.
His aunt, Wanda Mintz, told My Fox 8 that Chris Mintz had talked to his father in North Carolina as he was walking into class.
“My brother talked to Chris on the phone while Chris was walking into school to tell him to remind his grandson that grandpa said, ‘Happy Birthday,’” Wanda Mintz told the news station.
4. He Enlisted in the Army After Graduating From High School in North Carolina
Mintz posted this “throwback” photo from his high school football days. (Facebook)
After graduating from Randleman High School in 2003, Mintz enlisted in the Army.
He was a football player at Randleman. His family still lives in North Carolina.
5. It Was His Fourth Day Back in Classes at Umpqua
Mintz was in just his fourth day of classes back at Umpqua Community College.
His aunt says he her brother, Mintz’s father, had spent the week before in Oregon with his son and grandson, according to My Fox 8.
Mintz was working at the local YMCA in Oregonand was studying to be a fitness trainer, his cousin told The Daily Beast.
