TEMPLE, Texas — Michael Cahill was a father, a husband, a healer, and, when he died, a hero.
The veteran died on November 5 of 2009 during the infamous terrorist attack on Fort Hood. Cahill tackled a shooter, losing his life but saving many others.
It's a moment his daughter Kerry Cahill said was not out of character for him.
"When we couldn't get a hold of him that day we knew," she said. "We were like either he's trying to save everyone or he did something."
Cahill and his wife, Jolene, were on honored on Thursday when the local organization Help Heal Vets dedicated their craft center to the family.
"For me what it is was reminding everyone who we should be remembering and who we should be talking about and how to be more like my dad and my mom," Kerry said.
The now Cahill Center helps veterans or active duty members who are suffering from war wounds by using arts and crafts.
"It's about service. What they have done is set the example of service we all should aspire to, to kind of live in that realm," Help Heal Vets CEO Captain Joe McClain said. "His last act on this earth was trying to protect his patients."
For Kerry and her siblings, they were happy to see their name on a building dedicated to healing.
"By coming together for creative arts, they can work on their fine motor skills, social interactions," McClain said. "All these little things that when you heal from something, it's not a silver bullet it's a bunch of small battles and these tools help us win the small battles."
This location is the only one in the area that's been dedicated to a member of the community.
