Does America Still Have Heroes?

January 19, 2010 • written by staff

Every year the Veterans of Foreign Wars sponsors an essay contest called the “Voice of Democracy” for all high school students.  The topic changes annually, and this year’s assigned topic was, “Does America still have heroes?”   Sergeant Ellis explained that Tom “earned top honors for our local VFW Post, with a $200.00 cash prize.  His essay then moved on up to the District 4 level for competition where he again earned a first place netting him $300.00.  The essay then moved on up to the state competition held this past Saturday at the Crown Plaza Hotel in St. Paul where he earned 3^rd place and a check for $600.00!  Colonel Brockshus and I were both in attendance at the banquet and were very excited that Tom earned 3^rd place honors.  State wide there were 1700+ VOD essays from high school students that were initially submitted to their local VFW posts throughout the state of Minnesota.  These 1700 essays were “whittled” down to the final 9 from the 9 districts that were considered for state honors on Saturday.” 

Tom’s prize winning essay follows:

            Everybody has their own stereotype about what makes a hero. To tell the truth, none of these are wrong. With this logic, America has many heroes. The most common type of hero that people talk about are the war heroes, but then there are the lesser-known heroes that people seldom talk about; for example, firefighters, paramedics, and police officers. Then, there are the heroes that no one talks about, the ones that live in the home. Although no true American would dispute that there are heroes in America, many have no idea where to find them, or what traits make an individual a hero.

War heroes have specific qualities that separate them from other heroes. Take for example this man, Sgt. Paul Smith. Many would call him a hero. Sgt. Smith was stationed in Iraq supervising the construction of a POW camp near the Baghdad International Airport. On April 4th, his Task Force was violently attacked by a large enemy force greatly outnumbering his own. When he realized the vulnerability of his men and himself, he quickly organized a defense of his men, one Bradley Fighting Vehicle, and three Armored Personnel Carriers. As Paul personally engaged the enemy forces with grenades and anti-tank weapons, one of the APC’s was hit by an RPG and a 60 mm mortar round. Without thinking for his own life, Sgt. Smith ran through enemy fire to mount the 50-caliber machine gun on the mortared APC. He maintained this exposed position to create a distraction while the wounded were evacuated. Unfortunately, he was mortally wounded. His family was presented the Medal of Honor that Sgt. Smith had earned for saving the lives of his men without regard for his own life.(“U.S. Army Center of Military History”) To his platoon, I am sure that Sgt. Smith is a hero.

People don’t have to be away fighting a war to be considered a hero. Two firefighters named David Johnston and Keith Grant risked their lives by throwing themselves on top of a victim while the intense heat of an apartment fire nearly caused their death. Another victim of the apartment fire was trapped inside his home but these two firefighters were able to pull him out just as its roof collapsed. They were awarded the Medal of Valor for their heroism. “Clearly, if not for the heroic efforts of these two courageous and valiant firefighters, both of these innocent victims would have succumbed,” said Fire Chief Daniel J, Gaumont, (“Fire Rescue1” 1). These two are, without a doubt, heroes.

Another example of a hero would be Sgt. Muller, of the Rochdale police force. Sgt. Muller saved the life of a young girl when her drunken father came home and threatened to kill her with a kitchen knife. Muller talked the man down from his drunken rage and stopped him from murdering his only daughter, (Appleton 1-2). Every day, that girl thanks god for people like Sgt. Muller. Heroisms aren’t always confined to the men and women who risk their lives everyday. On February 22nd, 2002, paramedic Ted Ziegler was returning home from work, and came across a horrible looking car accident. Strewn outside of the car was an unconscious 8-year-old Kaitlynn Comer. He called for backup and proceeded to perform CPR on the unconscious girl. When the medics arrived, she was awake and breathing. Later, the thankful Kaitlynn and her mother wrote a poem for Ted, entitled “Our Hero” and it explains what a hero is. Some of the lines explain what qualities define a hero:

A hero is someone who hears a voice, and does a job without a choice, by using their courage they will find a way to do what’s right. Fear won’t knock a hero off track, they’re generous, faithful, loving, and strong, they serve their public night and day, they’re committed to people in so many ways, they risk their life for strangers, and always do their part, their role is weary, they do their best, and their life is about helping the needs of me and you. Then there are just the last lines of thanks that Kaitlynn gave to Ted;

My hero loves his uniform, he loves his risky life,
He’s proud to be a blue shirt, I’m proud he saved my life
Love Kaitlynn

By Kaitlynn’s own words, all of these men are heroes, (“Pittsburgh Emergency Medical Services.”)

There are heroes that are rarely mentioned, heroes that don’t receive any praise. A hero like the single mother working four jobs to keep her apartment, but still finds time to take her son to soccer practice. Or heroes like the alcoholic father who gives up his crutch to give his daughter a better life. Especially the parents who can barely afford food but still give their children a very merry Christmas are heroes. These are the lesser known heroes. These are heroes that aren’t recognized by the eyes of the public, but instead the eyes of their children. People who do their best with what they are given, and still will do anything for other people. Those people are heroes.
            America still has its heroes. From the war hero to the firefighter, the policemen to the paramedics and the heroes in homes right now. Some of them are recognized by millions, and some of them are thanked everyday with the shining eyes of happy children. So yes, America still has its heroes. You just need to know where to look.

Works Cited

Print sources:
Whitehead, Alfred. The Heart Behind The Hero. Trabuco Canyon, CA: Stony Creek Press, 2000. Print.
Whitlock, Chuck. Police Heroes: True Stories of Courage About Americas Brave Men, Women, And K-9 Officers. New York, NY: St. Martins Press, 2002. Print.
Non-Print sources:
Appleton, Dave. “Hostage Saved by Police Hero.” Rochdale Observer 28 Sept 2004: 1-2. Web. 14 Oct 2009. <http://www.rochdaleobserver.co.uk/news/s/345/345237_hostage_saved_by_police_hero.html>
“Paramedics Save Little Girl’s Life” Pittsburgh Emergency Medical Services. Web. 14 Oct. 2009.<http://www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/ems/html/zeiglersaveslife.html>
“Medal of Honor Recipients: Iraq” U.S. Army Center of Military History. 03 Aug 2009. U.S. Army Center of Military History, Web, 14 Oct <2009.http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/iraq.html>
“Two NY firefighters receive IAFC’s highest award for valor” Fire Rescue1. 15 Aug 2008: 1. Web. 14 Oct 2009. <http://www.firerescue1.com/awards/articles/425112-Two-NY-firefighters-receive-IAFCs-highest-award-for-valor

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