Staff Sgt. Shawn Manning, a Twin Falls native who was severely wounded in last month's shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, will visit family next week in the Magic and Wood River valleys, his mother confirmed Monday.
"He will be here during the holidays," said Shari Taylor, who lives in Hailey. Manning's brother Brian Manning also lives in Hailey and his sister Kym Lott and her husband, Eric, live in Twin Falls. Shawn Manning and his wife, Autumn, currently live in Lacey, Wash.
"He's still in a lot of pain, and he's got some healing to do, but it's a miracle he survived at all and will have no permanent injuries," Taylor said.
Manning was one of 42 people, mostly soldiers undergoing processing for overseas deployment, shot at Fort Hood on Nov. 5, allegedly by Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan. Thirteen of them died.
Manning, one of the first victims, was shot six times, once in the chest, three times in the abdomen and once each in a leg and foot. Manning's family reported earlier that "all of the shots missed major organs and arteries."
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Manning, initially hospitalized in Texas, was transferred to Madigan Hospital at his home base of Fort Lewis in Washington in late November and then released, Taylor said.
"He's still under a doctor's care," she said "It will be a few more months before he's fully healed."
Manning serves with the Combat Stress Unit in the U.S. Army 467th Medical Detachment Unit and provides mental health services to other soldiers. Even after being wounded, his family reported, he was "worried and thinking of his fellow soldiers" at Fort Hood.
Manning was at Fort Hood the day of the shootings preparing for deployment to Afghanistan. He previously served tours of duty in Iraq in 2003 and 2006.
"When serving in Iraq, Shawn would visit the orphanages whenever they could get to them," his family reported previously in a news release. "He liked to talk and play with the children and would often share his care packages with them."
Hasan has been charged under military law with 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder. If found guilty, he could be sentenced to death.
Terry Smith: tsmith@mtexpress.com
Shawn Manning
