Spencer Stone

Spencer John Stone (born August 13, 1992) is an American former United States Air Force staff sergeant. In August 2015, Stone, along with friends Alek Skarlatos and Anthony Sadler and three other passengers, as well as an off-duty conductor, while travelling from Amsterdam on a high speed, Paris-bound train, disarmed and subdued a solitary, heavily armed Moroccan terrorist. Three days later, French President François Hollande awarded Stone, Sadler, and Skarlatos, as well as British citizen Chris Norman, the Legion of Honour. Stone was recognized by U.S. Ambassador to France Jane D. Hartley for "his actions in saving countless lives" and by U.S. President Barack Obama, with a ceremony held at The Pentagon to honor the trio. For his bravery, Stone was awarded the Airman's Medal and a Purple Heart. On October 8, 2015, Stone was stabbed during a fight in Sacramento and was released from the hospital on October 15. He was promoted to senior airman in late October and then staff sergeant in November 2015. In 2018, he portrayed himself in the Clint Eastwood-directed film The 15:17 to Paris which was based on the 2016 book of the same name detailing his experiences with Skarlatos and Sadler. Early life Spencer John Stone was born on August 13, 1992, in Sacramento, California, to Brian Stone and Joyce Eskel. Stone has two siblings; an older brother Everett, who is a California Highway Patrolman in Redwood City, California and an older sister, Kelly. Growing up in Carmichael, California, Stone met his now-best friends Alek Skarlatos and Anthony Sadler while attending the small K-12 Freedom Christian School in Fair Oaks, California, continuing their friendship into adulthood. All three men are described as sharing "a deeply religious background and a belief in service to their community" and identify themselves as Christians. His mom stated that he wanted to become a soldier, watching countless Navy SEAL videos with him. Stone later attended Del Campo High School where he played football, basketball, and other contact sports. Stone played basketball in junior year through to senior year. A teacher and coach said Stone was always looking out for family and friends: "His blue-collar attitude and how he cared about others, he would have been the one to step up rather than curl into a ball," and that, "He was always trying to pick up his teammates, giving them a high five." 2015 Thalys train attack