Wounded Army vet makes it to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro

Adam Keys was given a second chance at life, and he's making the most of it.

In July 2010, Keys was serving in Afghanistan as an Army paratrooper when he was severely injured by a roadside bomb. It was "touch and go," he told CBS News, and doctors gave him less than a 1 percent chance of survival. Keys beat the odds, making it through more than 100 surgeries, then learning how to walk and talk again. Through it all, he said, he thought about his fellow soldiers who didn't survive the bombing, and decided to live life to the fullest in their honor.

Keys, who has three prosthetic limbs, started competing in marathons on a hand cycle. Then, he set a major goal for himself: To climb Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa. Keys was accompanied on his journey by a friend who is a medic, as well as several Tanzanian guides who pushed him and kept his spirits up. After five grueling days and freezing nights, Keys reached the top. He left behind his Purple Heart, "for everybody that's ever been in the service," he said. "We owe you big time and we always, always appreciate it." Catherine Garcia

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.