Cadet from Brooklyn honored for actions during London terror attack
BAY RIDGE, Brooklyn (WABC) -- An ROTC cadet from Brooklyn who was studying abroad in London this past summer and saved the life of a man stabbed in a terror attack was honored Monday.
Twenty-year-old Mark Kindschuh knew from an early age that he wanted a career in the US military. His grandfather shared his own military stories, and Mark had watched the twin towers fall on 9/11 when he was just 5 years old.
His parents say his patriotism was strong even back then, and when he enrolled at Boston College, he also signed up for ROTC. While studying literature in the UK, he got his first chance to prove his valor.
He was out to dinner with friends on June 3 when a group of terrorists used a van to attack pedestrians around London Bridge and then began stabbing people outside the restaurant.
Kindschuh aided a victim who had been inadvertently shot by the police SWAT team and was bleeding profusely from the head. He helped stanch the flow of blood and was credited with saving the man's life.
On Monday, he was awarded the Medal of Valor -- the highest honor a cadet can receive -- for his selfless actions.
He said he did what anyone should have done, showing empathy to someone who was suffering.
Congressman Dan Donovan, who contacted the Secretary of the Army to recommend Kindschuh for the honor, and military personnel were on hand for the ceremony at the Fort Hamilton Community Club in Brooklyn.
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