Cpl. Alan Babin Jr., a combat medic in Iraq, was running to the aid of a fellow soldier when he was hit by hostile fire. Alan took a bullet in his stomach in the midst of firefight so severe that it prevented Alan's fellow soldiers from coming to his aid, so he lay there for three hours before help could arrive. Alan's prognosis was grim. Army medics didn't think he would live. Then doctors said, at best, he'd be paralyzed from the neck down. Alan underwent more than 70 surgeries, including five brain surgeries, and suffered a stroke. Since that time, with his mother, Rosie, by his side, Alan has made incredible progress, far surpassing his doctors' expectations. Now, Alan can use his arms, he can stand, and he's starting to move his legs; he's even rock climbed. And with his mother's help, he could soon be walking again some day soon.

Kim Roy of Yelm, Washington, is an intrepid Army wife with her hands full. While her husband, Justin, is deployed in Afghanistan, she's raising two energetic sons by herself: Danny, 2, and Maddox, less than a year old. Justin is on his second deployment. He's been gone for 15 months and the longer he's gone, the more Kim lives for those mid-day phone calls and instant messenger sessions with her husband. And though she's looking forward to Justin coming home, she knows there'll be some adjustment as he re-learns how to be a father.