Six days before he was to be reunited with his wife and two children, then retired U.S. Army First Sergeant John Borders was critically injured by an improvised explosive device (IED) Within minutes, air support arrived and transported Borders to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany. He was quickly transferred to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Maryland and was scheduled for surgeries every other day for several months.

John underwent over 55 surgeries in all. The extent of his injuries required him to go through limb salvage with his left leg and have his right leg amputated below the knee. With the support of his wife Mollie, also an Army veteran, and their two children, Brittany and Xander, Borders stayed positive. He doggedly worked through session after session with his physical therapist until he regained more use of his limbs and learned to walk using a prosthetic leg.

But walking wasn't enough for John. He wanted to run. He had a self-imposed drive to return to active duty. Every time he achieved one goal, he set two more. After more than three years, staff sergeant Borders completed his Medical Evaluation Board and returned to active duty as a counterintelligence special agent. Borders served over 27 years in the army, 12 of which he served as a handicapable individual. Deployed a total of 5 times, he completed his last tour in Afghanistan with his new leg.