The Marine responsible for saving the life of the daughter of Teen Mania founder, Ron Luce, is being hailed as a hero.
Hannah Luce was the only survivor of a plane crash in Kansas on Friday. Four people were killed when the plane went down en route to a Teen Mania event.
ORU Remembers Crash Victims
All five people on board were on their way to a Teen Mania “Acquire the Fire” rally in Iowa. All had ties to Oral Roberts University.
“The entire ORU community grieves for the families of the ORU graduates who lost their lives. We continue to pray for those who are recovering,” ORU President Mark Rutland said in statement Saturday.
Hannah, 22, and former U.S. Marine Austin Anderson, 27, both survived initial impact, with Anderson pulling Hannah to safety.
“She’s not able to talk because she’s been on and off the respirator,” Hannah’s friend Brooke Ninoski explained. “She was able to write down, like, ‘Austin saved me, Austin saved me, Austin saved me.'”
“We’re just being here for her. To love her, and we’re not talking much about the accident itself,” Ron Luce said.
‘A True Hero’
Anderson, a former Marine, had endured a lot of pain in his short life. He lost his father when he was just 15 years old.
But in a student documentary about his life, he spoke of how his strong faith helped him make it through the tough times.
“Not only increase my walk with God, but make it so strong that I will never have to worry again,” he says in the documentary.
Ron Luce said Anderson, who suffered burns over 90 percent of his body in the crash, died early Saturday morning. He called him a true hero for saving his daughter.
“I know Austin … and he was that kind of guy … having served two tours in Iraq … would give his life for his country, would give his life for a friend, would go the extra mile,” the Teen Mania founder said.
Hannah Luce is recovering in a burn unit in Kansas City, Kan.
