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| Matt McQuin and his girlfriend, Samantha Yowler |
Out of breathe. We grab those around us. We run to red lights of exit signs amid the darkness. We lay prone on the floor. We pretend to be dead hoping someday we will breathe again. We jump on top of those we love hoping that if one more bullet comes our way, it hits us and not them. hoping. Truly hope that the bullet hits me. a strange thought. A thought that we never thought we would have thought.
We walk gently through life never imagining moments like these. There is no practice. No manual. No preparation. We rely purely on our instincts. Purely on the connection between our thoughts and the movements of our bodies. There is no time for contemplation. No time for reason. No time for time itself. Only time for hope and prayers.
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| Jon Blunk and his girlfriend, Jansen Young |
Deep prayers. Deep breaths. One breath. Two breath. Three breath. No breath. Three men. Three men jumped on top their girlfriends as bullets flew through Theater Nine at Century Cinemas in Aurora, Colorado on Friday morning. Amidst chaos. Amidst gunfire. Amidst tear gas. These three men thought of the women they loved and used their bodies to protect them. They threw them to the floor. Under the seats. They held them tight. They held onto their beautiful women as tight as they possibly could. Lying on top of their bodies in case a bullet came their way.
All three of their girlfriends survived this unfathomable early morning massacre. Jansen Young, Samantha Yowler and Amanda Lindgren made it out of the theater that night to breathe another breath. The breaths are hard to finish because the three men, the three boyfriends took bullets. They took bullets to save their ladies.
Jansen had the courage to recall those last moments, "There was kind of a break in between each gunshot. Every gunshot, I was like, ‘This is it . . . I’m done for.’ Jon gave me one good push against that concrete again and then . . . I didn’t really feel his arms against my back anymore but I knew he was still there.” When the gunshots went quiet, Jansen realized her boyfriend was shot. “I started shaking him and saying, ‘Jon, Jon, we have to go . . . it’s time for us to get out of here." But he didn't move. His breath was gone.
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| Alex Teves and his girlfriend, Amanda Lindgren |
However, his heroic act will forever be remembered. And so will the bravery of the other two men.
These were the last moments of three heroes.
Jon Blunk, Matt McQuinn and Alex Teves.
Remember these names.
~Michael Skolnik
