Everyday Hero Stories

Where did your values come from?

We've all had people in our lives who have made a positive impact on us. A parent or grandparent, a sibling who was there for us, or maybe even just a guy who shines shoes for a living? Whoever they are, tell us their story so they can inspire us even more.

Tell Us Your Story
DETERMINATION
BRANDON C My friend Brandon is the most amazing person that I have ever met. We've been friends for over 11 years and he's never let me down. Just a few years ago, he was in a terrible motorcycle accident. He broke his back and his neck; there were a few days that they thought he wouldn't make it. It was even thought that...
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PERSEVERANCE
LARRY V Larry is the president of a Business Exchange. He is a graduate of Purdue University and Harvard Business College. He has dedicated himself to his community all his life. He is a deacon of his church, involved with the Boy Scouts and serves on multiple realtor boards. Most importantly, he has dedicated himself,...
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DETERMINATION
VINCENT C My hero is my nephew, Vinnie. In his senior year, 2005, he was in an accident and lost his left leg. His right leg was smashed as well. He was due to graduate in less than a month. While in intensive care, he would ask for all his friends and family to come in to see him. He constantly told everyone that he would...
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PERSEVERANCE
XAVIER C I am here to talk about my stepfather who had married my mother in 1994 for he loved her very much despite the fact she had three children. I am 34 now but at that time I felt very strongly that it was too soon for the two of them to get married. He was persistent and he believed very strongly in himself and his...
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PATIENCE
JOHN H I have chosen my grandfather, Johnny, as my all-time hero. When you talk about perseverance, patience, and joy, grandpa was the epitome of all these. When my dad was two weeks old, Grandpa, a caboose man on the Rock Island Line, fell off the caboose and was run over by the train. He survived, although he was a...
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LEARNING
DWIGHT H My hero is my 7th grade math teacher. He has really put a big impact in my life now, and now I believe I will have a bright future because of him. In class he would also explain things difficult and long, maybe he didn't know that he was explaining things difficult, but when he would explain things for a long...
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RESPONSIBILITY
LAVERNE P Laverne is the founder and Executive Director of the Greater Peoria Parent Youth Outreach. She believes that ordinary people are capable of extraordinary things and that empowered people feel a responsibility to themselves and their communities. Laverne is also a powerful motivational speaker, delivering...
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OPTIMISM
WOODROW Y My uncle, Woodrow, has been my hero for many years now. He was a loving husband to my aunt Charlotte - they were still holding hands and eating ice cream cones together after more than 55 years of marriage. Woodie is a wonderful dad to his daughter, and has served as a surrogate dad to many, many of her friends....
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OPTIMISM
MARIN M I personally don't know Marin, but I know of Marin through her journal on her website. She was diagnosed with brain cancer in February 2005 and, at 12 years old, she has shown remarkable resilience, strength, and a positive attitude. She was a member of the Swim Atlanta Swim Team and I heard about her through...
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OPTIMISM
SAM K Sam, my little brother, was adopted. When we picked him up, mum and dad knew that he was delayed. He has Autism. Sometimes he's a pest, but he always has this huge smile on his face. (well, most of the time) And he always thinks that the best is going to happen. He'll always believe in Santa, the Easter Bunny and...
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TEACHING BY EXAMPLE
RONALD B Ron, wow, what a great person. Growing up in the Young Men's Christian Association, I had someone to look up to always. Becoming a volunteer of the YMCA, I had someone to look up to always. Becoming an employee of the YMCA, I still had someone to look up to - Ron. Growing into a man who makes decisions everyday...
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DEDICATION
JUDY L My mother is a silent hero in our education community. She has been teaching for close to 30 years, most of which was spent in schools with struggling economic communities. Her passion in life has always been to teach children to read. She demonstrates such dedication to her work, it's astounding. Since I was...
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LOVE
MR. PEMA My dad, my hero. He will always be my hero, not only because he is my dad but also because he has been my pioneer in many things that I do now. He is in fact my backbone and my reason of survival. I called him the other day to inform him that I would be coming home for the New Year festival. He was kind of...
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LOVE
MICHAEL B My hero died 21 years ago when I was 14 but his spirit and values live with me every day. The hero was my father - a man who taught me the value of living in the moment. My father lived everyday by laughing at life, by savoring the moments with his family and friends. He taught me not to take the little things...
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COURAGE
BOBBY S My hero is my husband who has been a soldier for eight years. He was in the Marines for four years and has been in the Army for the past four years. He has served two tours in Iraq. He was one of the first people to cross the border and is very proud of what he does. He is my hero because he is willing to leave...
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LOVE
PATRICIA B I would like to nominate my mother, Pat. She is my mother, my friend, my world. Ever since my dad passed on, she has been there every day for me and my brother. She shows us love and how to love others no matter what or who they are. As Elbert Hubbard said, "The love we give away, is the only love we keep."...
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LOVE
FERNANDO V In the 20-plus years, I have been working with special education students, I never met anyone quite like Fernando V. When I met him, I was introduced not to a quadriplegic eight year old. Instead I met a breath of fresh air. 'What a personality,' I thought. 'We're going to have fun.' And we have. Lots of it....
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FRIENDSHIP
BRITTANY S I'm sure a lot of stories on here have to do with incredibly amazing life-changing people. My story might not seem amazing, but the person is completely life changing. She is my best friend, Brittany. She makes hundreds of people smile in our high school. She makes people wonder what it's like to live a beautiful...
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LOVE
ANDREA R My mother, Andrea, is a wonderful woman who has given so much to this world. She's spent the last 15+ years of her life helping her son who has a learning and mental disability; not to mention giving her outstanding support to her daughter who has gone through life's ups and downs. My mother has offered strength...
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LOVE
CARIDAD G I have served in the Navy for 15 years and am a veteran of Desert Storm, the conflict in Bosnia, and of course the current war in Iraq. I am currently in my fifth deployment away from home. My hero is my wife. Through it all, my wife has been all I could ever ask for as a man, as a father and as a husband. Often...
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LOVE
BEATE S I never realized how all encompassing her qualities were until I was prompted to choose a "Category" in which to place my "Hero." There didn't seem to be one which appeared to be any more applicable than the next, so I chose "Love" because she is "Pure Love' within herself and within the universe. She shares and...
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LOVE
DEBAY D I nominate my sister, Debay, as my hero. Three years ago I was diagnosed with Leukemia and she was there for me. Not only did she travel to Montreal from the Dominican Republic to be with me through my first and most terrifying induction treatment of chemo, but when the time came for me to find a donor for bone...
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COURAGE
MARK W 'My father, the hero.' My father, Mark, has held his dying best friend in his arms; been scarred by war; lost his mother; endured three failed marriages; fought a 40-year battle with alcoholism; suffered an impoverished and abused childhood; and fell victim to bankruptcy. Through it all, the pain of his losses is...
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LOVE
JOAN R My grandmother, whom I call Nanna, is everything to me. She has done everything for my mom, my little brother and myself. She is 70 years old and hasn't slowed down a bit. If it wasn't for her, I don't know where we would be. She always puts others first and is always concerned about others rather than herself....
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CARING
SUE K Sue is what you would call a true hero. She has endured many hardships and has successfully overcome adversity. She was only getting 14 hours a week at work while taking care of her disabled son, and trying to keep the bills paid. No matter what was going on in her life, she always had a smile on her face and a...
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LOVE
WANDA G This is to my hero, my grandmother and friend for 20 years. She was the lady I want to be and I have started to become. My grandmother passed away January 16, 2005, fifteen days before my twin and I turned 20 years old. That was the worst day of my life. She was and did everything for me since I was born. She...
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LOVE
SCOTT M There are so many people who come into our lives for various reasons. Some are there to challenge us, some to use us for their own purposes, and then some come into our lives to just give us a hand. The angels were working overtime when they made sure one of the people in my life would be Scott - my best friend...
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CARING
JOHN C This is the story of Johnny (as he is know in the community). Johnny was born with brain damage. Because of this he was never able to read. His IQ is 80, which makes him retarded but only in the minds of people who do not know him. Johnny, with the help of his mother, took his drivers license test and his CPR...
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LOVE
BARBARA G B This is about my mother who is 82 years of age. She adopted me from her daughter who is my birth mother. My mother Barbara adopted me when I was only 16 months old - she was 55 years old. She didn't have to do it but she loved me enough to bring me home where I belonged. She adopted me so I wouldn't go to another...
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LOVE
ALADI J My hero is my aunt. She took care of me from the time when I was nine months old. She died on the recently after a prolonged illness. She was my best friend and confidant. Her life of love and sacrifice for others around her, even in the midst of scarcity and lack, has taught me to love, sacrifice for and respect...
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LOVE
RYAN G My hero is my best friend Ryan or as we usually call him Ryan G. He is a language teacher teaching English to Korean students. Among his ideals is to help others the best he can and he is not even expecting a return to what he has done. I've once been touched by Ryan when I had an accident while I was crossing...
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LIVE YOUR DREAMS
RYAN A Always capturing every moment and never setting his video camera down, Ryan is consistently pursuing his passion. In knowing this young man for six years he has always had a love for filming. On Friday nights when the student body is looking forward to the big game, he has other plans in mind. Instead of cheering...
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COMPASSION
SARAH AND JEFFREY Y It is not every day that two youngsters set an example as role models in their community. Sarah & Jeff, 14 & 12, also happen to have cystic fibrosis. Although suffering from a life-threatening disease, they always have the compassion to give back to their community. Sarah has experience dealing with the...
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