Although a year has passed since the murderous Fort Hood rampage, the pain of losing loved ones is no less real than it was on that day of the massacre.

Such is the case for the family of Mike Cahill, the only civilian to be killed by accused Fort Hood shooter Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan.

"In some ways it feels like it's been 10 years and in some ways it is like it was yesterday," his wife Joleen Cahill said. "It just depends on the day I have."

The 22-year Army National Guard veteran was working as a physician's assistant at the Fort Hood's Soldier Readiness Processing Center on the day of the killings. The 62-year-old reportedly died trying to stop Hasan by throwing a chair at him.

"He always did what was right first.  Whether it meant his job, whether it meant someone being mad at him, you know, whether it meant his life," Keely Vanacker, Mike Cahill's daughter, said.

"He would rather be the one charging than a 23-year-old who hasn't had a chance to see their kid grow up yet," his other daughter, Kerry Cahill, added.

Cahill's den has remained mostly untouched by his family, with photos he had taken still lining the wall, according to a report by Austin, Texas television station KVUE.
 
"I have to think of Mike and his good memories and I have to always think about the fact that he possibly saved lives," his wife said.

Still, the pain of the family's loss remains raw and slow to heal.

"The wound really isn't closing and you can't...it's almost like at this point we can't close our wound yet," Vanacker said.  "We have to wait."