DALLAS (BP/FBW) — The lone survivor of a March 15 attack on five Southern Baptist humanitarian aid workers in Iraq is back in the United States.

Carrie Taylor McDonnall arrived Saturday evening at a Dallas-area hospital on a medivac flight from Germany. She is reported to be in stable condition after the 12-hour flight.

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Physicians who evaluated McDonnall on arrival are pleased with her condition and optimistic about recovery. She received wounds in the chest, face and all four limbs in the attack, which killed her husband, David, and co-workers Karen Watson and Larry and Jean Elliott.

The doctors reported that bones shattered by small arms fire in McDonnall’s right arm and leg are aligned and healing. Her facial injuries do not appear to require reconstructive surgery. And while McDonnall lost most of three fingers on her left hand, her thumb and middle finger are intact, leaving her with a functional hand. She is right handed. Physicians also reported that her other wounds are healing well.

McDonnall has been heavily sedated since the attack, but since arriving in Dallas she has awakened and is responding to family, the doctors said.

Carrie McDonnall, 26, and her husband, David, 29, have served as career missionaries with the International Mission Board since November 2003.

The couple met while serving in the two-year Journeyman program, and prepared for the mission field at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, Texas. They celebrated their first wedding anniversary last summer while leading a dozen Southwestern students on a three-week humanitarian mission to northern Iraq.

Jacksonville resident Kristen Dunn Hager, who, with her husband Bryan, are members of Fruit Cove Baptist Church, said she has known Carrie Taylor McDonnall since they were students at Texas A&M 1996-2000.

According to Hager, even in her McDonnall’s college years, she exhibited the commitment which eventually took her and her husband to Iraq.

The two coeds also served together on the college ministry team at Central Baptist Church in Bryan, Texas, which coordinated the church’s outreach to over 500 students.

McDonnall, whom college friends called "Niki," organized freshman Bible studies, while Hager organized studies for transfer students.

"In college, even with all the other outlets available, Niki was committed to all aspects of the church. She has an infectious personality and was a committed leader," Hager said. "I’m glad to know that she is going to recover from her injuries."

A memorial service for her husband, David, was held March 20 in his hometown of Lamar, Colo. A service for Karen Watson is scheduled for March 24 in Bakersfield, Calif., and for the Elliotts March 25 in Cary, N.C.

[Witness newswriter Carolyn Nichols contributed to this report]