White House Lauds American Heroes for Paris Bravery

The three Americans who stopped a gunman aboard a Paris train in August were honored in at the White House Thursday.

Alek Skarlatos, Spencer Stone, and Anthony Sadler were praised for their teamwork, courage, and quick-thinking.

Secretary of Defense Ash Carter described their bravery at Washington news conference.

"After they knocked out the gunman, they tended to other injured on board before paramedics and police arrived," Carter said.

"It's an amazing story, right out of a movie, and Alek, Spencer, and Anthony have been rightly celebrated on both sides of the Atlantic," he said.

Stone received the Airman's Medal and the Purple Heart in recognition of the injuries he suffered. Skarlatos was awarded the Soldier's Medal and Sadler was given the Secretary of Defense's Medal of Valor.

"The White House was amazing. I kind of just walked in and saw President Obama and just froze for a second. And it was just unreal." Stone told reporters of the day.

Sadler discussed his life-long friendship with Stone and Skarlatos.

All three have been friends since childhood. In fact they all attended a Christian middle school in California together.

"These two actually go back to about 5 years old, they've been neighbors all their lives," Sadler explained. "And then I came along in middle school."

"And these were the first two that I befriended at our school," he said. "And we've been friends ever since. It's been pretty amazing, I couldn't have picked a better two people to be with in this situation."

The Sacramento Bee has reported the three men are Christians with a deep faith. Sadler's father is a pastor at a Baptist church.