On the 10-year anniversary of the mass shooting on Fort Hood where 14 people were killed, including an unborn child, and 30 others were wounded in what is called the worst domestic terrorist attack on a military installation, families, friend and 6 News staff remember the fateful day.
Those who were killed and wounded were honored and remembered in a ceremony Tuesday at the Fort Hood Memorial in Killeen.
Dozens showed up at the memorial site to remember the lives that were lost and those whose lives were forever changed by the tragedy.
Here are the stories of those we affected.
Chief Warrant Officer Michael Grant Cahill
Retired Chief Warrant Officer Michael Grant Cahill, 62, was the only civilian killed on Fort Hood.
Cahill retired from the National Guard after more than 20 years of service. Family members close to him said he was always interested in learning.
"He could tell a really great story and he knew everything. He was just a walking encyclopedia". his daughter Keely Vanacker said.
Sgt. Justin DeCrow
Grieving father Daniel Decrow shares the story of his son, Staff Sgt. Justin DeCrow, who he said didn't flinch under the fire of his enemy.
Staff Sgt. Amy Krueger and SFC Aaron Nemelka
For any military family, Casualty Notification Officers are the last two people you want to see at your front door.
"At 2:30, I got a knock on the door telling me she (Staff Sgt. Amy Krueger) was one of the fallen," Krueger's mother Jerri Krueger said.
Krueger, an Army psychiatrist, was among the 14 people killed on Fort Hood. Krueger and Teena Nemelka said it still feels like the shooting happened yesterday.
"To get through these past years we have decided to celebrate his life more than mourn his loss," Nemelka said.
Nemelka's son, PFC Aaron Nemelka, was one of the soldiers killed after the shooter walked into the Soldier Readiness Processing Building and opened fire.
Aaron grew up in Utah and loved music. He wanted to go to college and thought the Army was a great way to start.
"He was just 19 when the shooting happened, so he didn't get that far," Nemelka said.
Krueger raises money for scholarships to honor her daughter. Staff Sgt. Amy Krueger was from Wisconsin and joined the Army after 9/11. She was getting ready to be deployed for the second time.
"I said, 'Amy, you can't take Bin Laden down all by yourself,'” Krueger said. “She was that tough. She said, 'Watch me.'"
Since the shooting, Krueger and Nemelka said they have been through a lot together.
They have been through years of delays and a change in legislation that allowed the Fort Hood shooting victims to receive Purple Hearts. They sat through the death penalty trial of the shooter and both have become frustrated with the justice system.
"He took the privilege and rights away from our family and yet he still has the right to be here on this earth and live," Nemelka said.
Both moms said they will never forget that fateful day on Nov. 5, 2009.
Even though they are more than a thousand miles apart, through the tragic death of their son and daughter they have formed a special bond.
“We have become family with each other,” Krueger said. “We stay in touch and that's never going anywhere. Our wonder beautiful children brought us together.”
Fallen victims of Fort Hood shooting
PFC Michael Pearson
Sheryll Pearson still can't believe her son, PFC Michael Pearson, is gone.
"It was a shock to say the least and the way I found out about it, it was just a shock. We got a phone call from the surgeon who said that he was shot three times and he had lost a lot of blood," Pearson said. "I was watching the news and it turned from 12 to 13 for the death count and I knew it was Michael. And then the phone rang."
Pearson said that growing up, her son was always moving forward. He wouldn't stay in one place for very long. An avid musician, he dreamed of teaching guitar and music theory in his hometown of Bolingbrook, Illinois.
As quickly as the last 10 years have gone, she said there has been a rollercoaster of emotions. Pearson said anger and sadness dominate those emotions but she's tried to remember the Michael who made her life so joyous and unpredictable.
"He was my best friend and I'm his best friend," Pearson said. "He knew that I liked peanut butter cups so every night he would go out and buy me the biggest peanut butter cups he could find, knowing it would make me mad because I always worried about my weight."
On the 10 year anniversary of his death, Pearson can't help but wonder what her son would be like today. She said his bright future was taken far too soon.
"The world, the world just lost somebody who-- it would have been neat to see who he was going to be," Pearson said.
Col. Ben Danner
Retired Col. Ben Danner said even though he has been to 36 nations with the United States Military, he never encountered anything like what he saw 10 years ago on Fort Hood.
“So it was actually sort of a lazy Thursday as far as things go on Fort Hood and I had been assigned there a little over a year, “ Danner said. “Everyone was getting off at 3 and at about 1:30 I got a call on my cellphone from one of the folks that works for me that was near the Soldier Readiness Center, and said we’ve got an active shooter here.”
Gen. Robert Cone, Danner and his whole team knew that the next hours, days and months were going to be incredibly stressful, but it is what their training prepared them for.
“The response was quite overwhelming. By the next morning, we had over 270 media outlets, 571 media personnel, and 40 satellite trucks right outside the gate,” Danner said. “Gen. Cone deployed the whole cops headquarters, came back and hung around a little bit, and then changed command, so there were other generals that had to deal with the aftermath which lasted for years literally and still plays a part today.”
Since 2015, Danner has found a career teaching 8th grade English at Jarrell Middle School.
Cpt. John Gaffaney
Christine Gaffaney is still in disbelief following the death of her best friend and husband, Cpt. John Gaffaney, who she lost at Fort Hood.
"I said, 'There's no way that it could be your Dad.' He just got there, he had just got to Fort Hood the day before," Gaffaney said. "I said, 'Sgt. Kramer, what's going on? What's going on?' He said, 'Ma'am, I can't talk right now' and I said I understood."
The frantic phone calls and wonderment of what was happening in Central Texas gave way to a reality that Gaffaney said she wishes wasn't her own.
"There was a knock at the front door and they told us that John was one of the soldiers killed at Fort Hood," Gaffaney said.
Capt. John Gaffaney was a psychiatric nurse out of San Diego and a Navy Veteran. He later served 15 years with the California Army National Guard and was eager to rejoin the military following the attacks on Sept. 11.
When he learned the Army was in need of mental health workers in Iraq and Afghanistan, "He was determined he wanted to go back in," Gaffaney said.
Gaffaney said her father took a lower rank of captain to get there and help in any way he could.
"It was just unbelievable and my son was a little angry because he said he never wanted his dad to go back in the service," Gaffaney said.
Stories came out in the days following the attacks at Fort Hood. The heroism of Capt. John Gaffaney was on full display as he faced certain death just hours after his arrival.
"He threw a chair at the person who was doing the shooting and got him off balance a little bit or otherwise there would have been more soldiers killed," Gaffaney said.
Ten years later, Gaffaney said it's gotten easier but it hasn't gotten better.
"There's just an empty spot in my life," she said. "He meant so much to me and to my son."
All of these mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles and friends may be gone, but they will never be forgotten.
6 News Remembers
It was a normal day in the 6 newsroom when a shots fired call turned into a tragedy that the reporters, anchors, photojournalist and behind-the-scenes staff would cover for months on end.
This is a look back on those early moments in our newsroom and what it was like covering the story as new information came in.
More military stories on KCENTV.com:
- Vice President Mike Pence spoke to soldiers, personnel on Fort Hood
- A Second Chance at Life: Local veteran tells her story of life after surviving suicide attempt
- One man's cross country tractor trek to help veterans comes through Central Texas
- Killed in combat: Teague High School retires football jersey of soldier, former student who died in Afghanistan
- 'ISIS is pure evil:' Fort Hood soldiers returning to Middle East to support fight