When Bridgette Whinery heard about the shootings at Fort Hood in Texas, the Coos Bay woman knew her son would be among those lending a hand — not one of the victims.

Call it mother’s instinct.

“She just had this peace that I was OK,” U.S. Army Spc. David Whinery said Thursday by cell phone from Fort Hood.

Whinery, a 2006 Marshfield High School graduate, arrived at the Soldier Readiness Center around 1:30 p.m., where an Army psychiatrist reportedly had opened fire at fellow soldiers. Whinery saw several people on the ground in front of the building.



“Some of them were moving,” he said. “Some weren’t.

“I wasn’t sure what was going on really,” Whinery added, “but I could tell people were hurt.”

He would later discover the people were victims of a shooting rampage that left 13 people dead and 30 more injured at the Army base.

Thursday afternoon, suspected shooter Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan unleashed a torrent of gunfire on colleagues for reasons not yet determined, according to military reports.

Whinery said he immediately focused his mind on his combat training. He went into action to help.

“I went to the rear of the building where there was another gentleman on the ground who was only being helped by a couple of people, so I went to help him,” Whinery said.

The soldier had been shot twice in the stomach and had a bullet injury to his face.

“We were really just trying to keep him stable and conscious,” until emergency personnel arrived, Whinery said.

“He was definitely a trooper. He was calm and collected,” Whinery said. “He was medical personnel himself, so he knew what needed to be done.”

The injured man told the people aiding him what to do until EMTs got there.

Last Whinery heard, the man was in critical condition.

“I'm definitely going to be checking on him after this,” he said.

Minutes later, Whinery heard another round of gunfire. He heard people shouting that another gunman was coming.

“We rushed behind some cars, took some cover and jumped from car to car until we got to a safe spot,” he said.

Officials led him to a “safe room” and put the building on lockdown.

He was prohibited from making contact with family for several hours after the melee due to military protocol intended to curb misinformation.

In Oregon, his family tried to get news. His wife, Megan Whinery, tried desperately to get in touch with her husband, but to no avail.

“My daughter in-law called me first. She was frantic saying ‘Did you see the news?’” said Bridgette Whinery. “I just had this thought, ‘I wonder if he was close by (to the shootings) and that’s why he couldn't get into contact with (her).’”

“I found out, sure enough, he was,” she said.

Once the communication ban was lifted, “The first thing I did was call my wife and let her know I was OK,” Whinery said.

The couple has an 18-month-old son, David Jeremiah.

Throughout it all, the soldier’s mom and dad, David Whinery — a pastor at Harvest of Faith Family Church in Coos Bay — held faith that their son was safe.

“We prayed and we said ‘He's going to be OK.,’” Bridgette said. “So we just waited to hear from him.

“He handled himself very well and calmly and that’s what he’s supposed to do.”