Retired Army Staff Sgt. Jarod Behee was shot through the head in Bayji, Iraq on May 5, 2005.

It was his second tour in Iraq after crossing the berm on the Kuwait border in 2003 on active duty. He’d joined the California National Guard and volunteered to deploy, leaving behind his wife and daughter. He’d also volunteered for the security mission on which he was injured.

“They said, look at him, he’s probably dead. Nobody could survive that kind of shot,” said Behee. “But I proved them all wrong because I’m a survivor.”

Behee is medically retired and volunteers at the VA hospital near his home California. “I try and give back.” His goal is to become a licensed physical therapist to help out his fellow disabled veterans.

If he had it to do all over again? “I wouldn’t change a thing, I’d do it all over again. Except, I might not volunteer for the last one,” he said.