San Bernardino survivor says victim Shannon Johnson saved her life

A survivor of the mass shooting in California is praising a deceased co-worker for saving her life.

It was the only reaction Mary Lynn Reese could have when she found her classmate, 45 year old Shannon Johnson was among the victims. “We would have never guessed that only five minutes later, we would be huddled next to each other under that same table using a fallen chair as a shield from over 60 rounds of bullets being fired across the room”.

A man many will remember as a hero, but his friends at Briarwood say they’ll remember him as the big teddy bear who had a hug and a kind word for everyone he met. “You get to school and you hear that this has happened to one of your classmates”.

“Shannon Johnson was my best friend and he was so many other people’s best friend”, she said.

Johnson was one of 14 people killed during the massacre, which is now being investigated as an act of terrorism.

The mayor’s office said in a statement Thursday night that “we have learned that one of our own…is among those who lost their lives”, according to the CBS story.

Small comfort… Shannon Johnson’s girlfriend Mandy Pifer said his heroic actions weren’t surprising. They were mostly from truck stops – mementos from his days as an 18-wheel driver, before he finished college and settled into a job with the Department of Public Health in San Bernardino County, Pifer said. But Tashfeen Malik, Syed’s wife, reportedly posted a pledge of allegiance to ISIS through a Facebook alias account and then later deleted it. Pifer said she and Johnson would sometimes talk about the terrorist group. “He also loved his community and his fellow co-workers”, wrote Pifer.

Johnson, 45, was a health inspector for San Bernardino County since 2005, overseeing food safety, recreational health, and housing, according to his LinkedIn page.

Shannon Johnson went to Briarwood Academy his sophomore and junior year in high school.

Signs of radicalization and potential inspiration from foreign terrorist groups have led the FBI to investigate the mass shooting in San Bernardino, Calif., as an act terrorism.

To Peraza, he was her savior.

Peraza said in the statement.

“I believe I am still here today because of this wonderful man”.

A fund had been started for Johnson at GoFundMe.