A Missouri firefighter who saved three teenagers from a frozen lake in 2015 has experienced his own miraculous recovery after doctors said he wouldn’t survive.
Sometimes we do something kind for a stranger, then get busy with life and forget all about it. But God doesn’t forget.
When we step out to love and help others, He meets us with grace beyond what we could imagine.
That’s exactly what happened to Tommy Shine. He saved three teenagers from a frozen lake, and now he experienced the divine hand of God in his own life.
The Hero Who Saved Three Lives
The 50-year-old fire captain from Wentzville made headlines back in 2015 when he helped rescue three 14-year-old boys from a frozen lake in suburban St. Louis.
One boy spent more than 10 minutes underwater and made a full recovery.
This amazing rescue became the inspiration for the 2019 movie ‘Breakthrough,’ where actor Mike Colter played Tommy.
A Simple Fall Changes Everything
But in October 2024, Tommy needed rescuing himself. He was helping his wife Brittany at her salon when he fell from a ladder and cut his head open.
What started as a trip to get stitches turned into something much more serious.
During his treatment, doctors ran a full body CT scan and found an ascending aortic aneurysm near his heart.
“They suggested we follow up with a cardiovascular surgeon,” Brittany said. “It was very close to the heart and in danger of rupturing.”
The doctors scheduled surgery for December to replace Tommy’s aortic stem and valve. They told the family to expect a three day hospital stay and three to four months off work.
Tommy’s Heart Stops for 72 Minutes
At first, everything went well. The surgery seemed successful, and Tommy’s doctors were pleased with how he was doing.
Brittany felt relieved as she headed back to her hotel after visiting hours ended. Then her phone rang with news that changed everything.
“I got a call that he had coded moments after I left the hospital,” she remembered. Tommy’s heart had stopped, and doctors rushed him into emergency surgery. For 72 long minutes, surgeons worked to save his life while Brittany waited and prayed.
“His doctors were telling me to be prepared for the possibility that they wouldn’t be able to bring him back,” Brittany said. “But by the grace of God, they did.”
Brittany remembers something special happened during this crucial time.
John Smith, the teenager Tommy had helped save from the frozen lake years earlier, came to visit him in the hospital.
“John showed up at the hospital, and the moment he got off the elevator, Tommy got his heartbeat back,” Brittany told reporters.
All His Organs Shut Down
The next few weeks brought one crisis after another. At one point, all 11 of Tommy’s organ systems shut down. He coded three more times.
Doctors believed he had suffered a stroke and worried about brain damage. “One thing would get better, and two things would get worse,” Brittany explained.
The situation grew so serious that doctors warned the family Tommy would need to live as a quadruple amputee. They said he might be brain dead and would need care in a facility for the rest of his life.
Brittany knew her husband well enough to know he wouldn’t want that kind of life.
“My husband doesn’t sit still,” she said. “There was no way he would want to live his life strapped to a chair in a care facility.”
The family made the difficult decision to move Tommy to hospice care in January.
God Had Different Plans
But God had other plans. A snowstorm delayed the move by several days. The fire department asked if they could wait until the weather cleared so they could give Tommy a proper send off.
That weekend, friends and family came to say their goodbyes.
On Monday morning, as a nurse prepared to begin comfort care, something wonderful happened. Tommy started talking.
His doctors couldn’t believe what they were seeing. They decided to continue all medical treatments and give him more time.
“His doctors decided to resume all measures to give him more time,” Brittany shared. “As the days passed, things started to get better. Tommy showed us his story wasn’t over.”
Brittany knew exactly what had happened. “Simply, a miracle had been performed,” she wrote. “God is not done with Tommy’s story, and this confirmed it.”
Brittany praised God for what He had done: “THANK YOU, JESUS for all you have provided Tommy and our Family! YOU ARE OUR SAVIOR.”
Tommy Comes Home
Tommy spent months in rehabilitation in Chicago, learning to use his new leg prosthetics. After 141 days, he finally returned home in May.
Brittany shared the good news on Facebook on May 14: “Tommy got to enter his own home, smell familiar smells, shower in his own shower and sleep in his own bed for the first time in 141 DAYS!!!!”
Tommy and Brittany are now working on Rise and Shine Outreach. This nonprofit will help first responders who get injured outside of work and support amputees.
“Since Tommy can no longer be a firefighter, he wanted to find a way to continue helping people during emergencies,” Brittany explained.
God blessed Tommy with another reason to smile. His son Logan became a firefighter, following in his father’s footsteps.
Miracle After Miracle
Tommy went through a series of miracles that doctors couldn’t explain. His heart stopped multiple times, all his organs shut down, and doctors prepared to move him to a care facility because they believed he wouldn’t recover.
But right before that transfer, Tommy woke up and started talking. God brought him back when medical science said it was impossible.
No matter what the doctors say or what the reports show, God has the authority to heal, restore, and rewrite the story. All you have to do is trust Him with all your heart.
Please pray for Tommy’s continued healing and for his family as they start this new chapter of their lives.
WATCH: Firefighter Who Saved 3 Teens Fights for His Life (Feb Report)
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