25 year-old Kyle Carpenter should not be alive today after jumping toward a grenade to save another soldier on a rooftop in Afghanistan. But he is alive in every way. He’s going to school, giving speeches, and continuing to inspire people every day.

It took 40 surgeries and two and a half years in a veteran’s hospital before he was ready to carry his scars back to South Carolina where he ran the country roads and breathed in the fresh air. He got back into shape and ran the Marine Corps Marathon two weeks ago.

In June, Kyle was invited to the White House to become the second living Marine since the Vietnam War to receive the nation’s highest military decoration — the Medal of Honor.

(WATCH his story below)