Jayden Perkins, 11, was stabbed to death while protecting his pregnant mother and little brother from a home invasion involving a recently paroled man who the mother had a protective order against. Perkins was a football player and a dancer who loved life and was also going to act in his first play. This loving and sensitive spirit inspired others in his dance troupe and was considered a shining star. His mother and brother survived the attack that took place in the Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago. His death is shining a light on a broken system in Chicago that the Mayor has vowed to fix so his death will not be in vain and protections will be put in place to save countless others. Thank you, Jayden, for being an angel on this Earth. (Photo Credit: Sarah Giordano Curran / LC Photography) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

On January 4, 2024, a gunman entered Perry, Iowa High School and murdered a sixth grader and injured six others. One of those critically injured was Principal Daniel Marburger who was credited with saving students by intervening with the teenage shooter so they could escape and survive. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation said that Marburger did some “pretty significant things” to protect others. This incredible hero who dedicated his life to kids died Jan. 14, 10 days after saving the lives of others. We respect and honor you today. (Photo: Facebook / Claire Marburger) #WhosYourHero and #NationalHeroesDay

Drea Norman was in Club Q on the night and early morning hours of Nov. 19 and 20, when a gunman opened fire, murdering five people — Raymond Green Vance, Kelly Loving, Daniel Aston, Derrick Rump and Ashley Paugh — and wounding several others. Drea is a trans woman who was credited with saving the life of one the drag performers known as Del Lusional as well as others when the shooter was knocked down by two men who were struggling to contain him. Drea began kicking the shooter repeatedly in the face and teeth to stop him. The other two heroes are Thomas James who grabbed the shooter’s rifle and was shot in the ribs, but still fought the gunman and U.S. Army vet Richard Fierro who began hitting the gunman repeatedly with the shooter’s own pistol (see below). Once subdued, Drea ran to check on Raymond Vance, who unfortunately was murdered that night. We thank Drea for saving lives that horrible night and for her compassion for others. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay (Photo courtesy of Z Williams)

He was the only kid on the bus not engrossed on his cell phone and it paid off for a busload of children. Dillion Reeves, in 7th Grade at Warren Consolidated School in Michigan, was sitting only a few rows back from the bus driver, when he noticed that the driver slumped over. The driver had radioed in about feeling woozy. Dillion got up and immediately took the wheel and pulled the emergency brake, saving the bus from veering off the road. Thank you, Dillion! #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay (PHOTO: CBC News/Video Screenshot)

Harry Belafonte was an activist to his core and the way he lived his life, illustrated just what a force of nature he was. He was born in Harlem and left high school to serve in the Navy before returning to New York to study acting and then became a singer. All his life, he used his celebrity for positive, societal change and shined a light on issues that needed attention, whether in this country or others. This Jamaican-American was involved in the Civil Rights movement since the 1950s and 60s, and fought against racial discrimination his entire life. He helped Martin Luther King, Jr. and his family keep on their feet, and even bailed the Rev. King out of the Birmingham jail and raised funds to bail out others as well. He helped to finance the 1961 Freedom Riders and was one of the organizers on the March on Washington in 1963. Globally, he promoted social justice as well. Perhaps because of his association with the late, great Paul Robeson, Belafonte was once blacklisted, but it didn’t stop his activism. Later in life, he helped organize trips and aid to Africa; that included helping to organize the song “We Are the World’ to raise funds. He has received many awards for his tireless work, including Chief Justice Earl Warren Civil Liberties Award. He was also in the Peace Corps and was a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF. Yes, he was the singer whose signature song is the Banana Boat Song (Day-O), but he was — more importantly — the daylight in hundreds of people’s lives. — Honored by Kenneth Cole #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Two military men and another unnamed hero saved lives on Nov. 19, 2022 when a gunman walked into the LGBTQ+ nightclub Club Q and began shooting killing and wounding patrons. Thomas James grabbed the shooter’s rifle, burning his hand and then got into an altercation with the gunman and tried to grab another handgun away. Even though Jane was then shot in the ribs, he continued to fight the shooter. Richard Fierro, a U.S. Army vet had three tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan who was twice awarded the Bronze Star, immediately got up and grabbed the shooter’s pistol and began pummeling him with it. Fierro then began shouting out orders to others to get the gun, to stomp on the shooter. Another unnamed hero did (if and when we can name that hero, we will). They not only subdued the shooter but prevented further loss of life and injury. In the aftermath, a wounded even James gave up his spot in the ambulance to another wounded survivor. At night’s end five patrons were murdered and over two dozen physically injured with even more suffering from PTSD. We thank the bravery of all who helped that night. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay #ClubQHero

Dillon Reed, 26, and his girlfriend were dining in a restaurant in Seatac, WA when they witnessed a panicked man suddenly performing the Heimlich Manuever trying to dislodged a piece of meat from his colleague’s windpipe. “It brought back to the memory of my mother dying of cancer,” said Reed. “It’s hard to watch when you can’t do anything to help. This time I could, and you better believe I was going to do something.” While dialing 911, he got up, but the man choking had already lost consciousness. Tom Teves, 61, had no heartbeat and couldn’t breathe. With the 911 operator guiding him, Dillon learned CPR on the spot. Chest compressions was the most important, he was told. Dillon performed CPR for 6 to 8 minutes until paramedics took over and pumped Tom’s chest for another 7 to 9 minutes. The EMT team was able to dislodge the meat. Tom was intubated in ICU for three days, and on life support for a week. The medical team saw little hope of recovery as he had no pulse for 15 minutes with little to no oxygen. To everyone’s shock, Tom came back and is expected to recover fully.

Both Reed and Teves are asking everyone to learn CPR. “If my phone service hadn’t worked, it would have been a different situation,” said Reed. “Everyone, no matter where you are or what you do, should learn CPR.” Added Teves: “If Dylan hadn’t done what he did, I’d be a vegetable today. There are many people I owe my life to, but if not for Dylan, there would have been no brain to come back to.” He credits the Seatac Fire Department and EMS unit, Dr. Harper and the entire medical team at Valley Medical Hospital in Renton, WA. (Nominated by Tom and Caren Teves, whose heroic son Alex was one of the young men from the Aurora Theater shooting who inspired National Heroes Day; Photos: Dillon Reed, Tom Teves) #NationalHeroesDay #CPR #WhosYourHero

Teachers who tried to both calm and save their students, children who called 911, and parents who did everything possible to rescue their children. The heroes of Uvalde who worked to help others while they faced death and/or sacrificed their own lives. These are only some of the faces of the heroes of the Uvalde school shooting: Teachers Irma Garcia (23 years as a teacher) and Eva Mireles (17 years teaching) were murdered, Arnulfo Reyes (teaching for 17 years) was wounded, fourth-grader Miah Cerrillo who called 911 and ended up smearing blood on herself and played dead, Amerie Jo Garza, a Girl Scout and fourth grader, was the first murdered after she tried to dial 911, fourth-grader Samuel Salinas called 911 and was wounded. As police waited outside and chose not to confront the gunman, parents rushed to the school to try to save their children themselves as did the husband of Eva Mireles. Teacher Elsa Avila ran to the door and jammed a broken key into it to try to prevent the shooter from coming in the classroom and then told her students to play dead as bullets whizzed over them. We honor all of you. You are the very best of human nature. #National Heroes Day #WhoseYourHero (Photos: School District, CNN, Garza family and ABC)

When a gunman walked into a doctor’s office in the Natalie Building of Saint Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Oklahoma and began firing on June 1, 2022, it was William Love who jumped into action. Love immediately barred the door in order to allow others, including the love of his life and wife of 54 years, to escape. Love served in the U.S. Army in Vietnam and was a first sergeant. He had retired from the military after serving this country for 27 years. This courageous man was murdered, sacrificing his life for others. The gunman also killed three hospital staff: Dr. Preston Phillips (59), Dr. Stephanie Husen (48), and receptionist Amanda Dawn Gleen (40). They all leave behind grieving family and friends. Love leaves behind his wife Deborah, his brother, two daughters, eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. We salute you, Mr. Love. #NationalHeroesDay #TulsaHero #WhosYourHero (Photo: Tulsa Police Dept./Facebook)

Rev. Billy Chang had just returned from Taiwan and was attending a luncheon thrown for him attended by about 50 people at the Geneva Presbyterian Church, a Taiwanese congregation in Laguna Woods, CA. That’s when a gunman, any over tensions between China and Taiwan, began shooting. People fled, others were shot. When the gunman stopped to reload, Dr. John Cheng charged him. The distraction saved others, law enforcement said. That when others rushed forward. Rev. Chang grabbed a chair and hit the shooter as hard as he could. Others jumped in held the shooter down and hog-tied him with electrical cord until help could arrive. "The majority of the people in attendance were elderly, and they acted spontaneously, heroically," said Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes. Dr. John Cheng was murdered saving the lives of others, no doubt about it, said Barnes. Five other victims, ranging from ages 66 to 92, were shot. We send loving prayers to everyone at the Church and especially to the family of Dr. Cheng. (Photos: South Coast Medical Group, Frank Cheng/ABC) #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

“He went towards the gunfire, he went towards the fight," Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia told ABC News this week about Aaron Salter, Jr., who died trying to save others on Saturday, May 14, during a hate crime/mass shooting in Buffalo, NY at Tops Supermarket. Salter actually shot the killer but the bullet did not penetrate the 18 year-old’s body armor. The shooter then returned fire and Salter was murdered. Salter, Jr. served on the police force for 30 years. He was only 55 years old and leaves a grieving family behind. Our hearts are with all of the families suffering from this brutal hate crime. #NationalHeroesDay #WhoseYourHero (Photo: Salter family handout).

Shawn Zeleny is recovering from several broken bones (nose, left femur and all ribs) and his left ear had to be reattached, but he is alive — and so his teenage stepdaughter Brittaney Deaton after he saved her during a devastating E-2 tornado that hit their home. Brittaney was outside the Zeleny home in an RV when the tornado warnings sounded. He told local ABC affiliate WFAA, that as soon as he opened the door, “and all of the air was just sucked out of the house.” When he got to the RV, he realized that the steps were hooked up on the door blocking her exit. "I rip the steps away, and we start heading towards the house, but then a gust of wind hits us, and the entire trailer toppled onto me. I never blacked out; I just looked up and saw the travel trailer disintegrated in front of me," he said. He is still recovering in a Fort-Worth hospital. We thank you for your bravery, Mr. Zeleny. (Photos: WFAA) #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

UPDATED. It is with great sadness that we must report that Matt Wennerstrom, 20, who was in the Borderline Bar & Grill when the shooting began on Nov. 7 in Thousand Oaks and saved multiple people, died in a motorcycle crash on Feb. 26, 2022. He will always be remembered for immediately taking action in the mass shooting. He hid people and made sure people were protected before grabbing a bar stool and smashing the window with it to get people out. By his own account, he helped 30 to 35 people escape after getting broken glass out of the window so people would not be hurt escaping. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero #LoveToThousandOaks #ThousandOaksShooting #BorderlineShooting

Ryan Pasborg, 32, of Green River, WY was driving down the highway on his way to work when he glanced over to see fire and smoke billowing from a small home. He immediately into the driveway and that’s when he saw two boys and a little girl run out of the house. The kids told him that their 4 year-old brother and their Mom was still inside. So Ryan ran into the home, and because of heavy smoke, crawled to find anyone he could. He located the little boy in the kitchen and hurriedly carried him out of the house and put all the kids into his truck as it was freezing cold, below zero wind chill.

Ryan then ran back into the house and crawled to find their mother. He found her but she was badly burned and couldn’t breathe from the smoke. He dragged her outside to fresh air but then noticed she wasn’t breathing. So he began performing CPR. That’s when she suddenly inhaled and came to. He then got the mother into the truck and drove them all away from the fire and called first responders.

But the story doesn’t end there. Ryan then bought several hundreds of dollars worth of clothing and items the family would surely need and dropped it off at the family’s grandmother’s house which is where they were all recuperating. The Sweetwater County Sheriff’s office confirmed the actions of Pasborg. And Sheriff John Grossnickle told Gephardt Daily that Pasborg is “a perfect example of what it means to be a real hero.” An example in human goodness. Thank you, Ryan Pasborg, for the person you are. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay (Photo: Ryan Pasborg/Sweetwater County Sheriff)

Sunday, Jan. 9, Michael Langston was at his girlfriend’s home and decided to play a video game while eating breakfast. “I get online and took a couple of bites and the next thing I know, I feel something caught in my throat. I tried to drink water and it came back up. I ran to the kitchen to see if I could spit it back out. I turn around and see Keegan, and I can’t talk.” So he began motioning to Keegan who ran into his sister Peyton’s bedroom to tell her what was happening. Michael followed them in. Peyton saw his face and knew he was choking. After giving him three hard thrusts, the food dislodged.

How did an 8 year-old know how to do the Heimlich maneuver? She was taught by her mother, Tabitha, who is a paramedic. Only three weeks prior, Tabitha used it on Keegan when he began choking during a family movie night. “Peyton remembered what she was taught,” Michael told National Heroes Day. “And, she didn’t hesitate after Keegan told her what was going on. I would be dead if not for the kids because I could not breathe. I love my kids, and am forever grateful for them. I’m so proud of them.” The family wants to raise awareness so others can be saved by the Heimlich maneuver.

Peyton is one of us who live with a rare medical condition. Hers is called Iron Refractory Iron Deficiency. So she saved his life while having a port in her chest, which is all the more remarkable. “There’s nothing I can do to repay her except to be the best Dad I can be,” said Michael. #NationalHeroesDay salutes your quick thinking and bravery, Keegan and Peyton. (Nominated by Michael Langston) #WhosYourHero #HeimlichManeuver

Stephanie Lontz was making her delivery rounds as an Amazon driver in Las Vegas when she came upon a large dog (which, while sweet to people) was aggressive towards other dogs. Stephanie first tried to keep the larger dog from attacking another small dog on her route by bringing the dog owner and small dog into her truck to save them. Hearing a honking horn, neighbor Lauren Ray stepped outside her home to see what the commotion was. Her 9 year-old cocker spaniel, Max, followed her out the door, which had been left ajar. That’s when the Max spotted the larger dog and ran up to him. After petting the larger dog, Lauren unexpectedly found herself in the middle of a dog fight.

Screaming for help, she was able to scoop up Max but could not get away from the larger dog. Seeing this, Stephanie jumped off the truck and put herself between the aggressor dog and Max, which allowed Lauren to flee safely back into her home. “The least she did was save my dog from being killed,” Lauren’s father Michael Ray told National Heroes Day. No one was bit, just shaken up. NBC affiliate Channel 3’s Cory York was first with the story which then went viral. WATCH THE VIDEO HERE. (Lontz was nominated by Michael and Lauren Ray) #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero (video courtesy of Ray family).

Xaven Garcia is an angel, not only for his family, but also for others who need an organ transplant. This brave, young man risked and lost his life in November 2021 after the Garcia home caught fire. First, he pulled his father out of the house which was becoming engulfed in flames and smoke. Once outside, the two tried to put the fire out with a garden hose but it was useless. That’s when his heroic father, Phillip, told Xaven to stay put and then ran back inside to search for others. Soon, the smoke became so unbearable, Phillip broke a window to get out. Despite his father’s warning, Xaven had also run back into the house. A neighbor told the Albuquerque Journal, Xaven ran back in either to find his Dad, another family member or to rescue the family cats. Tragically, Xaven did not make it out.

And here’s how Xaven became a hero twice: When this high school senior got his driver’s permit, he decided to become an organ donor. So, his heart, spleen, liver and kidneys will be saving four other lives, we were told by New Mexico Donor Services who helped him realize this gift for others. Xaven was an altar boy at St. Alice Catholic Church, and was involved in USAF ROTC. A verified GoFundMe has been set up by his grandmother to help with Xaven’s funeral expenses. Be like Xaven. Save lives. Become an organ donor at registerme.org. (Photo: Courtesy of the Garcia family) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay #BeTheGift #DonateLife #BeLikeXaven

We honor the heroes of United Flight 93: Lou Nacke (New Hope, PA), Jeremy Glick (Saddle River, NJ), Mark Bingham (Phoenix, AZ), Todd Beamer (Flint, MI), Tom Burnett (Bloomington, MN)

Rick Rescorla --I had the privilege of meeting him -- was British-born and volunteered for the U.S. Army before becoming an American citizen. Sent to Vietnam as a platoon leader, he fought at the Ia Drang Valley, the largest engagement in the Vietnam War after being called in to replace a company that had suffered the heaviest casualties in the first day of combat. Rescorla not only positioned his men in the bloody, fighting pits the previous Americans had occupied, but also crawled alone into the enemy lines to survey the American defenses from the enemy's perspective, then crawled back and re-positioned his men. The next morning, they fought off an assault without losing a single man. Two days later, when a relief column of Americans were ambushed and nearly decimated, Rescorla helicoptered in with a handful of reinforcements; his confidence, skill and courage helped transform hopelessness into resolve, and helped save survivors who had been in immediate danger of death.

But Rescorla's greatest contribution to saving lives occurred on 9/11 at the World Trade Center. As head of security operations for Morgan Stanley, Rick had predicted a terrorist act involving airplanes. When planes hit the twin towers, Rescorla was ordered (during the chaos) to keep the thousands of Morgan Stanley employees right where they were. He ignored this order and began evacuating people along the routes he'd already scouted and planned. Making sure they were safe, he turned around and went back in to make sure that no one had been left behind. He saved 2,687 lives on that day alone -- but he did not save his own.

Just before the building collapsed, he telephoned his wife and said, "If something happens to me, I want you to know that you made my life." #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by Randall Wallace, screenwriter of Best Picture winner Braveheart, writer/director of both Heaven is for Real and We Were Soldiers, and director of Secretariat.

Ray Pfeifer, who retired from the New York Fire Department in 2014 after serving over 27 years never stopped fighting for his brothers and sisters, the first responders who fell ill after the 9/11 terrorist attack in 2001. Despite having renal cancer, Pfeifer fought for the extention and renewal of the Zadroga Act, named after NYPD officer James Zadroga who died off a respiratory ailment after responding to the terrorist attack at the World Trade Center. The Act provided health benefits to first responders who fell ill after 9/11. Pfeifer and Zadroga were two of many (along with Luis Alvarez, also honored here) who got sick after recovery efforts on 9/11. Pfeifer died in 2017, but not after making over a dozen trips to D.C. to fight for health care to be provided to our 9/11 heroes. His strength of spirit will be remembered. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Luis Alvarez, the retired NYPD bomb squad detective who — despite being sick in the end stages of cancer — testified in Congress alongside hero for heroes Jon Stewart to plead for help for our nation’s 9/11 First Responders. He lost his battle with cancer on June 28 of 2019. We remember Mr. Alvarez and salute him and others today this July 4, 2019 and again this year on July 4, 2020 as a symbol of the utmost in human bravery and courage. An angel warrior and angel messenger, both. We thank and honor you and all of your brethren. God rest your soul in peace, sir. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero (Photo: CNP/usage worldwide. Photo by Stefani Reynolds/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images).

Gary Lutnick was among the 658 employees who died at Cantor Fitzgerald. At 36, he was the youngest brother to Howard and Edie Lutnick who both survived the 9/11 attack. Howard didn't go into the office that day because he was taking his son to his first day of kindergarten. Edie slept in after a breakfast meeting cancelled. They were just two of the company's 302 employees who survived. Howard is now chairman and CEO of the company and he has built the company back up.

After 9/11, to help the victims of the families stand again, they began the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund and began assisting those who were suffering directly with their financial burdens. The fund has raised and distributed hundreds of millions directly to victims of natural disasters and emergencies as well as wounded members America’s military.

'After Hurricane Harvey hit the Texas coast, they immediately opened a fund for Hurricane Harvey victims promising that "100% of your contributions will go as direct financial aid to families in need." Now they are doing the same for COVID workers here. #HurricaneHarveyHeroes #COVIDHeroes #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay 

“Because it’s the right thing to do,” Austin Perine says. This little boy, who wears a red cape, started helping the homeless when he was four years old after his father explained to him that there are people without homes like the little panda they just watched on TV who was abandoned by his mother. Perine decided to try to change things so he and his father began making sandwiches and handing them out in Birmingham, AL to the homeless community. “Don’t forget to show love,” he tells people on the street as he hands them food. His superhero name, he says, is “President” and he hopes to become that one day. Thank you, Austin. We honor you today and always. (PHOTO: Karim Shamsi-Basha, Alabama Newscenter)

We are in the midst of a pandemic. We remember those families grieving and honor all those struggled yet perished of COVID-19. We honor medical personnel and first responders, every farmer, every trucker carrying our supplies and those along the way providing food, workers at food processing and packaging plants, stockers and cashiers at grocery stores, pharmacies and supply stores, restaurant employees making and delivering food via drive-thrus, food delivery workers, postal workers, sanitation workers, those at gas stations, correctional centers, our Armed Forces and National Guard, city and county workers, federal workers, teachers, journalists providing us with key information, all companies who are stepping up to re-purpose for this new war effort, those getting supplies for the elderly and immune-compromised, and all of YOU who are doing your part to help. We salute the helpers.

We are Americans, born of the grit and sweat of our ancestors (known as The Greatest Generation), who overcame incredible hardship yet prevailed. For future generations, we will, too. This is our time to show what we are made of in the name of loved ones who have fallen and those we love who are battling now. We will get through this and come out the other side. Together. Stay strong. Stay safe. Stay well. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

It happened so quickly. Jaxson Dempsey was in the backseat with his 20 month year-old sister, Lelia, on his way to get a haircut with his Dad when he looked over to his sister and realized that something was terribly wrong. “I knew she was in trouble because there was not a breathing sound,” Jaxson told National Heroes Day. “She was stressed and panicking.” Moments before, the family had driven through McDonald’s to get some Chicken McNuggets and little Lelia got one lodged in her windpipe. He immediately knew what to do and began hitting his sister on her back to dislodge the food. It worked! Jaxson, who just finished Second Grade, said he had watched WWE’s John Cena on a Nickelodeon TV show and learned from that. Explains his mom, “During quarantine, we watched a lot of TV and one show, in particular, was where John Cena played a substitute teacher and was at a Boys and Girls Club and was showing how to perform first aid … and Jaxson thought about that and put two and two together. The first thing he thought about was John Cena.” So what does Jaxson want to be when he grows up? “A doctor, fireman and a policeman,” he told us. He wants to help others. “He’s definitely an old soul,” says his Mom. We honor you, Jaxson, for being so heroic. We also salute Nickelodeon for providing such instructive — and in this case — lifesaving programming for kids. And Thank you, John Cena for acting in that role. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

A boating mishap that left both his father and his little sister in the water, sent this 7 year-old Chase Poust hero into motion. It all began when they all went out fishing on a river in Jacksonville, FL. They had just anchored the boat and little Abigal and Chase got into the water like they always do. His little sister was hanging on the back of the boat and then let go because the current was so strong. She had a life jacket and was instantly pulled by the current. That’s when Chase Poust, 7, tried to grab her and then he was stuck. Then the father, jumped in to try to save his daughter and was pulled away by the strong current. His Dad stayed with Abigal and Chase began dogpaddling to shore. When he got tired, he floated on his back and then went right back at it. Meanwhile, his Dad and his sister were stuck in the water drifting. When Chase finally made it to shore, he ran to a house and told them what happened and first responders were dispatched. “I screamed for help at the top of my lungs and waved my arms and sure enough someone heard us,” said Steven Poust, who told local ABC 7 that he wore himself out and was trying to keep from drowning. “Little man made it to shore and got help and that’s what saved our lives.” We salute this incredible little hero. (Photo: screenshot, ABC7)

Taptejdeep Singh, husband and father of two, worked to warn others when a shooter entered a building at the VTA Light Railyard in San Jose and was murdered in the stairwell. Taptejdeep had left the building where he was safe to run the adjacent building where the shooting was in progress to warn others and get co-workers to safety. This selfless hero was only 42 years old. We pray for his family during this devastating time. We will always remember him and the other 8 people who were senselessly murdered. #NationalHeroesDay #WhoseYourHero (Photo: Singh Family Photo)

Seven year-old Michael Martinez was in bed in January, 2021, when he heard a beeping sound coming from an alarm in the house. All of Michael’s family were sleeping. Thinking it was a warning of some kind, he crawled to his parent’s room to wake them. Crawled, because Michael Martinez is living with Cerebral Palsy and is normally in a wheelchair. Turns out that the beeping was the carbon monoxide detector which was detecting a leak coming from the gas stove. When the parents woke up and then went to his sisters’ room, and one of his sister’s was already exhibiting signs of carbon dioxide poisoning. "I was shaking because I was scared," Michael told KHOU. His parents credits Michael with saving all their lives. The little boy can’t walk and he misses out on many activities that other kids his age do. “I don’t want to be in a wheelchair,” he says. His mother, Angie, said that kids at school stare at him, but that “he wants to play, and he wants to run like the other kids. We have our moments where we … Michael and I just cry and just hold each other.” At the moment, the family is hoping to get a motorized wheelchair for Michael. To that end, they started a verified GoFundMe here. They are almost to their goal, but could use just a bit more help. (Photo: KHOU) #NationalHeroesDay #WhoseYourHero

Jonathan Bauer and his 13 year-old daughter, Ava, were on the road in Ocean City, MD when they witnessed and became entangled in a devastating five-car crash. When they came to a stop, Jonathan made sure his daughter was okay, before leaving his car to assist whomever he could. One of the vehicles, a truck, was dangling off the bridge. When he got to the truck, the dazed driver had already gotten out, but then pointed to the water. Jonathan looked over the guardrail and saw and a little girl in a pink dress kicking into the air while on her back in a car seat. To his horror, he watched the car seat then tumble over so the little girl was face down in the water. Jonathan immediately took off his shoes, put his legs over the guardrail, and then yelled back to his daughter to grab the first Firefighter she could before pushing himself off the bridge and into the Bay. Once in the water, he reached the girl and turned her over and started hitting her on the back to get the water out of her lungs the best he could. That’s when he and the 2 year-old were picked up by Joe Oertel and his 14-year-old daughter, Alayna, who were on a pontoon boat. Incredible heroism all around. We salute Jonathan Bauer, a selfless man of courage. (Photos: Greg Wehner; Ocean City Fire Department via AP) #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

Pilot and Astronaut, Michael Collins was part of the three-person crew with Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin who manned Apollo 11, which was the first lunar mission from NASA in 1969. He died on April 28, 2021 from cancer. As a young boy, Collins had dreamed of going into space. He graduated from West Point and then joined the Air Force to become a test pilot. In 1963, his childhood wish was realized when he became an astronaut for Gemini 10. In doing so, he became one of just a handful of humans to spacewalk.

The night before they splashed down in 1969, it was Collins who told the world about the thousands of unsung American heroes who made it all possible: “This trip of ours to the Moon may have looked, to you, simple or easy. I'd like to assure you that has not been the case … All this is possible only through the blood, sweat and tears of a number of people. First, the American workmen who put these pieces of machinery together at the factory. Second, the painstaking work done by the various test teams during the assembly and the re-test after assembly. And finally, the people at the Manned Spacecraft Center, both in management, in mission planning, in flight control, and last but not least, in crew training. This operation is somewhat like the periscope of a submarine. All you see is the three of us, but beneath the surface are thousands and thousands of others, and to all those, I would like to say, thank you very much." Thank you, Mr. Collins. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay (Photo: NASA)

Matthew McKeon and Justin Larrabee were in San Diego’s downtown Gaslight District on April 22, 2021 when they both had the same idea after a deadly crime was committed. Matthew saw a gunman in a black hoodie shoot four people right in front of him before the guy tucked his gun away and walked away casually down the street. While Matthew began following him, Justin heard the shots from another part of the district and as people were running away, he ran towards the sounds. He soon met up with Matthew walking behind the shooter and they realized they had the same intention: Stop him before he harms anyone else. They tackled him to the ground and held him down until police could arrive to the scene. Matthew said if he didn’t follow him, he was concerned that the shooter would have disappeared into the crowd. “Immediately after the two of us (Justin and he) made eye contact, visual contact, that’s when we decided almost immediately that we were … going to take him down,” Matthew told local NBC San Diego Channel 7. Justin agreed, saying: “So I just sprinted and tackled him … It was just an instinct. I thought probably more people were going to get shot, so … I thought I’d do what I could.” One man was murdered (a valet at a restaurant) and four were wounded in what was believed to have been a random shooting. (Photo: KNSD NBC 7) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Carol Dodge’s beautiful 18 year-old daughter Angie was brutally raped and murdered in June 1996 and a man named Chris Tapp was convicted for participating in the crime. However, after reviewing the videotape evidence, Carol Dodge realized that the wrong man was behind bars and the real killer was still at large. She then pushed detectives to re-investigate the death of her only daughter. Due to advanced DNA testing and thanks to Dodge’s doggedness and great police work, they were able to prove who the real killer was and the man, subsequently, confessed to the crime. In doing so, it laid the groundwork to get Tapp released from prison where he had already served 20 years. Dodge, however, did not stop there. She then pushed the Governor of Idaho to give Tapp compensation and took the politician to task for vetoing the wrongful conviction compensation bill. Her unrelenting victims’ rights advocacy for Tapp and another man wrongly convicted and on death row is admirable. As she wrote in the Idaho Statesman, “I don’t know a lot about politics, but I do know a lot about injustice … I am persistent in my search for the truth.” She is the recipient of the Idaho Women of Influence 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award. And we honor you as well, Mrs. Dodge, for your dogged pursuit of truth, fairness and for your relentlessness in making sure that Chris Tapp’s life could begin anew. (Photo of Tapp: Darin Oswald/Idaho Statesman) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Both people — the one saved, and the one whose heroic actions saved another — independently, told us that they felt a Higher Power at work. Here’s what happened: Snorkeling in Turtle Bay in Honolulu, Ohio resident Valerie Coolidge suddenly realized that she had drifted too far from shore. She tried repeatedly to swim back but the currents were too strong. “I raised my hand in the air and I yelled for help, but every time I opened my mouth, I got a mouthful of water. I knew that no one would hear me. I had only one lifeline left, and so I cried out to God, ‘God, send someone to save me!’ In moments, I saw a man walking on a stone pier.” It was Pele.

That day, Pele decided against his usual lunch place to eat with his construction co-workers and was laying on a park bench when he heard a very faint cry for help, so soft in fact, that he thought it was coming from his phone. “When I realized it wasn’t, I stood up and saw her being swept out into the deep water.” He rushed to the ocean’s edge and tried to get her to swim in, but she couldn’t. This father of five then took off his boots to dive in, but before doing so, he said a prayer. “The current and water was rough. I’ve known people who have jumped into the water to try to save others and didn’t make it. I asked God to help me and to help her.”

Once in the water, he grabbed Valerie, but their only hope against the current was for a big wave to push them back in. “It was harrowing,” Valerie recounted. That wave, however, did come and saved both of their lives. “I don’t know how Pele heard my little, pitiful cry for help. The waves were so loud. It was a miracle. It was God.” Pele agrees: “I believe the same thing that Valerie does: It was God. I know God put me on that bench to help her. I feel a connection with her somehow. I give God the glory and honor for using me to help her.”

Pele said he wasn’t a hero, he was just being human. #NationalHeroesDay thanks Pele for his courage and his humanness. (Photo: Valerie Coolidge, Pele Niko, Jr.) #WhosYourHero #MiracleOfGod

She is 18 and homeless — and a hero. “Our first introduction to Toriana was saving our volunteer’s life,” said Gloria Hatcher-Mays, executive director of the Rainier Valley Food Bank in Seattle. It was around 2:45 PM when a food bank volunteer, nicknamed “LA” left to go home. Toriana came upon him shortly after, finding him slumped over at the bus stop. She immediately started CPR, and continued until paramedics arrived. “I asked her if she had CPR training and she said not since the 9th grade, but she went for it anyway,” Hatcher-Hays told National Heroes Day. And in doing so, she saved his life. “It speaks to who she is and who she will be as an adult,” said Hatcher-Hayes. Toriana has had her struggles, but she is now on the path to achieve her goals. “She is working very hard. She is very smart, very poised.” And very much a hero. "If you see someone in need and you have the ability to help them, do it. God is clearly sending you to do something he can't," Davis told local NBC station King5. Great message. She is now volunteering at the food bank, filling in for the man whose life she saved. Thank you, Toriana, for your courage and action. A Go Fund Me has been set up to help Toriana; all proceeds go directly to her. (Photo: NBC King5) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

“One man can make a difference and everyone should try” were the wise words of President Kennedy. Lane Harper is that man. For years, he has been a police officer at the Birmingham, AL Police Dept. but off-duty, he is a citizen who has spent his own money helping countless families in need. Last year, when the pandemic hit, he wanted to do even more so he created The Power of Life Foundation. This 20-year law enforcement employee (now an instructor/trainer for the BPD) has been able to fund and distribute over 150,000 re-usable masks and roughly 125,000 lbs. of food for families needing help in three states (AL, FL and GA) via Power of Life. On Feb. 20, 2021, he joined with his alma mater, Alabama State University, and brought yet another 30,000 free face masks and food to the Montgomery area. (Photos: The Power of Life Foundation) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

2021 is a milestone in Scouting for young women: hundreds of females this year have achieved the rank of Eagle Scouts as the Boy Scouts of America’s inaugural class. Kendall Jackson from Gary, Indiana, is one of these dedicated scouts who has made history. She was only 14 when females were first allowed into the Boy Scouts and she joined up with Troop 53 in her hometown. “We are thrilled that hundreds of diverse young women have attained the prestigious rank of Eagle Scout, which is widely valued by universities, employers, and other respected institutions around the world,” the BSA told National Heroes Day. Earning that rank in scouting is no small feat as they must earn 21 merit badges, which takes unwavering commitment and sacrifice over many years. In fact, only 6% of Scouts actually make it to Eagle. In doing so, Kendall now has bragging rights with her brother who is also an Eagle Scout. Their Mom is a Scoutmaster so National Heroes Day sends out a big congrats to them all. (Photo: Kendall Jackson) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

One of the angels of Hurricane Harvey opened his doors of his two businesses yet again to house those out of power and freezing as a result of the Texas snowstorms. Jim McIngvale, owner of Gallery Furniture, opened two of his locations in Houston offering food, coffee, hot chocolate, blankets and sweatshirts. This comes after his generosity in 2017 after the most devastating hurricane ever to hit the US. Hurricane Harvey wiped out homes and businesses across Houston and as shelters filled up across the city, McIngvale, decided to help. Opening his two Houston stores for victims displaced by rising water, he ended up sheltering hundreds after a seven year old girl came to the store with her parents around 1:30 AM and pleaded to stay there for the night. He not only helped that family but then organized trucks with volunteers to rescue people and bring them back to safety. Mr. "Mattress Mack" McIngvale's business then tweeted out: "If you can safely join us, we invite you for shelter and food. God Bless." Like a true hero, he doesn't realize he is one and instead honors the actions of others. Costing about $30K a day to shelter the victims, he told a reporter, "People are more important than profits." We couldn’t agree more. #HurricaneHarveyHeroes #TexasSnowstormHeroes #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

An inquisitive 7 year-old, Elias Quezada, climbed into a garbage can and shut the lid in Tampa, FL when a few minutes later, a garbage truck arrived and lifted the can into the truck. Elias screamed as Sanitation worker Waldo Fidele looked in his surveillance camera and saw the boy being dumped into the back of the garbage truck. Fidele immediately shut down the rotor blades, saving little Elias from certain death. The little boy admitted to local station WTVT that he was scared, saying that he thought it was going to be “a mashed potato.” Also scared was Waldo who was shaken by the incident. Shawn Plunkett, operations manager for Waste Connections of Florida Operations in Tampa, told the Tampa Bay Times that if Waldo “hadn’t been paying close attention to the job, we would all be searching for a missing 7 year-old. Nobody would have ever known what happened to him” as the trash is shredded in the truck and then taken to the incinerator. (Photo: Waste Connections of Florida) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

When a man pulled into the Walgreen’s pharmacy drive-thru in Nashville, TN panicked that his girlfriend had suffered an opiod overdose, Keith Caldwell happened to be in the right place at the right time. A family nurse practitioner (a MSN and FNP) who works at the Vanderbilt Health Clinic inside the Walgreens, Caldwell heard the commotion and ran outside. The boyfriend had dragged his girlfriend out of the car and onto the pavement. Her eyes fixed. No pulse. Her face was blue. While a bystander called 911, Caldwell immediately went into action. He began CPR and three minutes of chest compressions. Eventually, she came to and was transferred into an ambulance. This humble hero then went back to work. Caldwell told local station WZTV that he was so appreciative of the help his coworkers gave, his medical training, and for God allowing him to be there at that moment in time to save her life. (Photo: Donn Jones/Vanderbilt University Medical Center) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay #VanderbiltUniversityMedicalCenter

If you see something, say something. Flaviane Carvalho, a restaurant manager/server at Mrs. Potato Restaurant, did just that when a family sat down at her table and she observed a painfully thin young boy with bruises on his face. She penned a note to him and held it up behind his parent’s back: “Are you okay?” The boy signaled back: ‘No.’ Then she wrote: “Do you need help?” The boy nodded. She called the police who came and rescued the boy. Police would later discover that the boy was covered in bruises all over his body because he had been strung up by his ankles and neck upside down and beaten. Other punishments included starvation (he was reportedly 20 lbs. underweight) and being forced to try to hold a plank for 30 minutes or be beaten again. Part of the abuse was to tell him that this is what Santa Claus wanted. His parents are in custody. Thank you for saving this boy’s life, Ms. Carvalho. To help this boy and his younger sister, donations are being accepted at COLE, SCOTT & KISSANE, P.A. Trust Acct. in c/o The Northern Trust Company; 600 Brickell Avenue, Ste. 2400; Miami, Florida 33131; Attn: Michael Villasana for the benefit of the minor children of Wilson/Swann. (Photo: Sam Thomas/Orlando Sentinel) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Jeff Simmons, a Washington native, works seven days a week at the Cold Season Shelter through the Coastal Community Action Program (CCAP) in Abardeen, WA. Until that shelter opened, he worked on the frontlines of COVID at the Ocean Shores isolation and quarantine facility, giving comfort to patients. What is remarkable about Jeff is that he was once a homeless drug addict. He had been an addict for 44 of his now 56 years and now has been 18 months sober. “One day, I just decided to get clean and sober,” Simmons told National Heroes Day. He said CCAP found his first job for him before offering him a position; they now house about 28 to 32 people a night at the shelter. According to one co-worker, his work ethic is unmatched. They joke that Jeff never seems to sleep as he works 24/7 to provide care (he takes two-hour naps). “God couldn’t have given me better training for the position I have today,” Simmons said. “I know He didn’t intend for me to be a drug addict, but I know He puts us through these experiences to train us for the positions that He really intended us for. Everyone we house here are some of the very people I lived with in tent city. I love everyone, but the homeless and those who suffer from drug addiction or mental issues, I love the most.” Thank you, Mr. Simmons, for doing God’s work during this pandemic. (Photo by Zachary Blair) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Meaghan Brown was working the front desk at the Embassy Suites in Homewood, AL when she heard people screaming and banging on the window. Meaghan, a young Mom who is studying criminal justice, ran to the pool area to find a young child laying on the bottom. Meaghan jumped in and pulled the little girl up and out, but the girl was unresponsive, not breathing. The hotel clerk then started CPR and hit the girl on the back until the little girl started breathing again. Afterwards, they shared hugs. Meaghan told local network WIAT (CBS 42) that she had learned to swim in elementary school and learned CPR in high school. (Photo: WIAT) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Kieran Foley (14), Drew Scalice (14), Tyler Armagan (14), Ryan Day (15) and Joseph Dietrich (14) — all high school freshman who are in Boy Scout Troop 47 in Middletown, NJ — rescued two small children from an icy pond when their inflatable sled hit a patch of ice and careened off course, down a hill and into freezing water. These Scouts heard parents screaming for their children, Olivia Heid, 8 and her four-year-old brother R.J., to jump off the sled. As the mother and father came running down the hill while seeing their children break through the ice, the boys by the pond sprang into action as the kids whizzed by them and plummeted into the water about seven feet from shore. Foley ran right in after them (losing a boot in the process), grabbed them out of the shallow water, and the other boys immediately formed a human chain. Together, they got the kids to land, saving them from possible hypothermia and death. “I couldn’t get down the hill fast enough,” the children’s mother Stephanie Irlbeck told Patch. “What an amazing thing to me was to see the boys immediately know how to form a human chain. I don’t know how they knew to do that.” Well, they learned it in the Boy Scouts. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay (photo: CNN)

Driving home from work, Sgt. Kyle Wetter saw the car in front of him get hit by a flying canister full of fuel which happened to slide off a truck. Within moments, the car was on fire. He jumped out of his car to help as the mother and father were already battling flames trying to get their baby out of the back car seat. Wetter grabbed his fire extinguisher and tried to put out the flames to no avail. He tossed that aside and did the unthinkable: he grabbed his knife, climbed in amidst the flames, and cut the seatbelt, pulling the toddler out from certain death. This Marine credits the Corp. for his training. He has been deployed a half a dozen times, including to Iraq and Afghanistan. He is a father of triplets himself. “If my wife and my children were in that car, I would hope there was someone like myself that was willing and able to help out,” Wetter told local station KTLA. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay (Photo: Kyle Wetter)

Leaving behind a 14-year-old son who is now parentless, Jennifer Toscano was a frontline worker who was driving along I-95 in Pawtucket when she came upon a rollover crash. She pulled off the road to help, and while tending to the wounds of a victim, she was killed by a hit-and-run driver. Her husband (the teen’s father) had died just four months earlier. A crushing blow for any child facing the death of two parents and within such a short time frame. A GoFundMe has been set up by the teen’s Aunt to help him with his future education. The hit-and-run driver, 22, was arrested and charged with driving while under the influence. We honor Jennifer today for her compassion and kindness and for being a great mother and role model for her son. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero (Photo: video capture WJAR)

Mary Jo Copeland, who has seen the number of poor and needing help rise exponentially from the usual 20,000 people her Sharing & Caring Hands helps each year with food and services. She takes no salary as she logs hour after hour helping those who have been laid off due to COVID and have children to feed. In the shutdown, most things were closed, but she stayed open. “I promised them: ‘I will not close.’ We served something like 8,000 meals that first week, and it’s gone on from there,” she told the Washington Post. “We’ve been open every day since this virus hit.” Then tragedy struck. Her husband, Dick, died of dementia in a nursing home and they wouldn’t allow her to be by his side because of COVID. They had been together since the age of 15, over six decades. She said she felt sick, but knew that she had a calling to continue God’s work: “We had people waiting in line, and they all had their needs. I went back to work,” she said. We honor you today and every day, Mrs. Copeland. (Photo: Jenn Ackerman for The Washington Post) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

James Betts, who has been helping children as a pediatric surgeon (a physician for 40 years) at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital in Oakland, is also a volunteer firefighter fighting fires in the Bay area. Not only has he been fighting the Dolan fire, Betts has suited up as a volunteer first responder for years. After an earthquake in 1989, he helped rescue survivors and recover the dead out of the collapsed Cypress Structure. He even amputated a boy’s leg to save his life. Now, he serves as a volunteer EMT in Big Sur. And, even at his age of 73 (almost 74) when most people are enjoying retirement, he said he has no plans to stop giving to his community. "To me, it's been a privilege to be able to become a pediatric surgeon as well as a firefighter,” Betts told ABC 7. “It’s an honor and a privilege to serve.” Thank you to ABC 7 for shining a light on this selfless hero. (Photo: ABC 7) #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

We salute all 31 Americans who are part of the first study for a potential vaccine, putting their lives on the line to potentially help others. The young man pictured is Jacob Serrano, 23, who is the very first American to receive the shot. After losing 7 family members to COVID-19, this young man agreed to be one of the first Americans to try a potential vaccine against the virus developed by Oxford and AstraZeneca in a Florida trial in Lake Worth. “I know there was a risk because it’s like — it’s a trial,” Serrano told CBS. “But I’d rather have us one step closer, no matter what it takes.” Thank you to all 31 courageous souls from all of us in these United States. Since this was posted, AstraZeneca has put the next phase of the Florida study on hold, given that one of its UK patient had a severe adverse reaction. We hope all of those in the Florida study will be okay. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay (Photo: CBS This Morning)

On Aug. 11, 2020, a severe storm with high winds ripped through Oak Creek Estates Mobile Home Park in Fort Wayne, Indiana, tossing Isabel Atencio’s mobile home into another and breaking it apart. When it was all over, Isabel was hit and died from blunt force trauma but her grandson was safe because she wrapped her entire body around her little angel to save his life in an act of unwavering love. "We all loved Isabel, she was a kind-hearted person, she would do anything for you," neighbor Marsha Pond told Fort Wayne’s NBC in Indiana. To that point, Isabel’s final action of her life was using her body as a shield in an act of unconditional love. Thank you, Isabel. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

Asaih Williams is only 9 years-old but tapped into superhuman strength on Aug. 8, 2020 when he managed to pull his father out of the water and to safety at Quietwater Beach in Florida. He and his Dad, Joshua, were playing a diving game and when Josh dove in from Santa Rosa Sound and didn’t come up right away. Asaih knew there was something terribly wrong. His Dad then emerged laying on top of the water, and Asaih swam over to him, turned his Dad face up and pulled and tugged and dragged him with all his might to shore, saving his life. Turns out that Mr. Williams had fractured his neck. The father of four underwent surgery and is recovering. (Photo: Gregg Pachkowski/pnj/AP) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Joseph “Joe” Costa, 56, who had worked at Baltimore’s Mercy Medical Center since 1997, and served as chief of the Division of Critical Care for the last 15 years, died of COVID-19 on July 25, 2020. David Hart, his husband of 28 years, said Costa loved his job. When it was clear that a criticially ill Costa was not going to make it, 20 of his co-workers surrounded his bed and held a vigil for their beloved colleague. By all accounts, Costa was a compassionate man who cared deeply about his patients and also his colleagues. He would take shifts on holidays so that those colleagues with children could celebrate at home. Those who knew him well said that Costa “selflessly continued his work on the front lines” during the pandemic. He died in the same ICU he oversaw. We honor your bravery and compassion, sir. The world is minus an angel walking among us. (Photo, Mercy Medical Center) #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

On the evening of July 14, 2020, Tyree Ward, 31, was packing up from a day at the beach when he heard screams. He dropped everything and began running, got to the ocean and swam with all his might. In the distance, 20 year-old Katie Stonehill was on the verge of drowning. He finally reached her and pulled her in. "He saved her life, absolutely," Wildwood Fire Chief Ernie Troiano III told local news station WPVI. "When time is of the essence, his timing was impeccable. He didn't hesitate. He didn't wait to call for help. He sprung into action, and it was truly a lifesaving measure." The Wildwood Fire Department thanked him for his heroics. A very grateful Stonehill said she thought she was going to die. She was taken to the hospital and now is recovering at home. The very humble Ward doesn’t think of himself as a hero. “I thank God that He put me there. Everything just happened the way it did. Nobody but the Lord put me in that place.” He said he just followed his gut. A man of true selflessness and courage. (PHOTO: City of Wildwood Fire Dept.) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Two civil rights icons, the Rev. Cordy Tindell Vivian and Rep. John Lewis, died on the same day, July 17, 2020. Rev. Joseph Lowery died in March, 2020. Andrew Young is still with us. As courageous young men, they faced down the evil of the Klu Klux Klan and racism. John Lewis endured a beating so bad while peacefully protesting that it cracked his skull, but regardless of personal danger and societal obstacles, they continued to fight for equality with the great Martin Luther King, Jr. As warriors for justice, they fought for an all-inclusive America — from sitting at the same dining counter with whites, to the bus boycott, to earning the right to vote. These men talked the talk and walked the walk with a simple message and philosophy: When injustice becomes law, fighting for justice becomes duty. We salute you and thank you for your service to this country. (Photo: The Atlanta Hawks) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

These are a mere 100 people of the more than 850 medical workers across this nation who have lost their lives due to COVID while helping others on the frontlines. They are all races, all creeds, all ages. These are our fallen, everyday heroes whose courage and spirit will forever be remembered. They include “doctors, nurses and paramedics, as well as crucial health care support staff such as hospital janitors, administrators and nursing home workers, who have put their own lives at risk during the pandemic to help care for others,” according to Keiser Healthcare. We know the ultimate sacrifices you have made for us. The words, ‘thank you,’ just aren’t enough. We honor you, and we will remember. You can find some of these heroes here on the Keiser Healthcare website, in a project with The Guardian. (PHOTO: Keiser Health Network) #LostOnTheFrontlines #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

UPDATED, August 1, 2021: Bridger Walker now is healing from multiple surgeries but still has the scar. He is learning to live with it, his parents say of his battle scar he received after saving his little sister from a dog attack.

PREVIOUSLY: “If someone had to die, I thought it should be me,” said Bridger Walker as he laid in the hospital looking up at his father. This courageous hero is only six years old. On July 9th, Bridger told his father that he and his 4 year-old sister were in the backyard of a friend’s home when a dog charged them. Bridger said he stepped in front of her so she wouldn’t be attacked. Instead, he was, and badly. Still, he yelled for his sister to run. The dog released Bridger’s head, and though he was bleeding badly, he ran to her to make sure she was okay and safe. He was then rushed to the hospital where he underwent an almost two-hour surgery. Thanks to other heroes — Dr. Jordan Greer II and Dr. Joseph F. Looby and their staff at the Cheyenne Regional Medical Group — Bridger is recovering. “His mother and I couldn't be more proud,” his father Robert Walker told National Heroes Day. “Our words cannot do justice to how much we love him. Last night we asked him whether he is more special now that people have heard his story.” Bridger, obviously wise beyond his years, answered, ‘no.’ “We followed up by asking him what it was that made him special. His response: ‘I am me.’ We are so grateful to know that he understands his value to this world is unique and special by itself. May we all come to that same realization and be the heroes of our own stories, and bring about good in our own special ways.”

This wonderful family has asked that anyone wanting to make a donation do so to charities like Mission 22, an organization dedicated to winning the war against veteran suicide or Operation Underground Railroad, committed to the permanent eradication of child sex trafficking. We celebrate Bridger for his bravery, and the entire Walker family for their goodness. (Photo: Walker family) #WhoYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

It takes a nation to help a nation. And that’s what is happening to one of the hardest hit areas of the COVID-19 virus in America. Helping Hands for the Navajo Nation in Arizona rose for a common cause — to make sure the elders, infants and people in the state’s indigenous communities are taken care of during the pandemic. “Its the Navajo people, its President and VP and Staff that are the heroes,” said Terry Murphy, founder/volunteer and one of the main organizers of relief to the tribal communities. “Midwest Food Bank supplies much of the food.” Truckloads of supplies have been going into the Navajo, Apache and Hopi communities with volunteers from all tribes organizing, cleaning and transporting. That includes the Winslow Guidance Assn. “The Native people we serve are facing big challenges not only from the virus but a collapse of their income,” added Murphy. “Tourism and beautiful words of art, carving and jewelry are not selling, so it’s just plain hard right now. They may be economically poor but are rich in spirit.” The organization has been steadily bringing in large family food boxes, fresh fruit and veggies for each family, some in remote areas. There is also a veterinarian named Dr. Ruby who is caring for animals and could use supplies. If you want to help this important army, click here for more information. #HelpingHandsForTheNavajo Nation #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Aleixandrea Macias is but one of many nursing staff on the frontline of COVID. Her photo and story went viral as she explained what it was to be working in the ICU on the frontlines. Her employer is Krucial Staffing in Overland Park, KS which has been sending medical staff to fill the caps where needed. Heroes all. The 24 year-old nurse from Brownsville, Texas, in her own words, explained the devastation the medical teams face inside the COVID ICUs in a Facebook post this year: “I have never seen anything like this before, never taken care of someone that is so healthy but at the same time so deathly sick. I've been working in a makeshift ICU for days now because there were no other nurses to staff the area. There are not enough staff even though we get new people daily, not enough experienced staff (because who on earth can be experienced for this level of sick?!), not enough supplies. I can't count the times I have heard "well we could try and do this but we don't have this". I'm not an ICU nurse at all, but neither is hardly anyone else working these units now. Of course we can't share patient info, but being in an ICU setting I am keeping my same patients day after day until they die. No one has left our unit yet except in a body bag. I've struggled to find my purpose being here … I have been translating Spanish for days for these people, in my own broken Spanish because anything is better than them understanding nothing. I've seen patients arrive on our unit not yet sedated or vented but in extreme respiratory distress and beyond frightened. I have explained what COVID is doing to their body, what the risks are of being intubated vs not, and I have listened as these people have called their family members for the very last time prior to being intubated. If I can leave here with anything at all, I can know that I helped give them those last moments with their family … These people are not old. They are young. Many with no medical problems. Strong people, physically fit. One who even worked 5 jobs at a time until Covid ravaged his body. This virus kills people. They all die at some point, it's just been a game of seeing how long we can keep them half alive. I feel like our efforts are futile, but I still try so hard and get so upset because I know that if it were Julio or anyone in my family laying there I would want the same done.” The nation thanks you, Aleixandrea. (PHOTO: Aleixandrea Macias) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

When neighbors saw smoke rising from a residential building, Tanisha Rivers called to her 18 year-old son Chianti Bryant and told him to see if anyone needed help. He didn’t hesitate. He ran to the building where he saw an older gentleman through the front window who — after Bryant beat on the door over and over — was able to unlock it. Chianti hurried him out of the apartment, which was already full of smoke, and then the young hero ran back into the building and to the back of the house and helped get two others to safety, including the man’s 16 year-old daughter and her 18 year-old friend. Both were asleep and were disoriented from smoke inhalation. Once outside, Chianti collapsed on the front lawn as emergency medical personnel arrived. They transported him to the hospital where he was treated for smoke inhalation and released. The heroic actions of young man saved three lives in Bainbridge, GA on June 4, 2020. (Photo by Capt. Terry Pait, Brainbridge Public Safety) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

José Andrés was on the ground after Hurricane Harvey making sure victims were fed, then was on the ground in Puerto Rico to do the same for the survivors of Hurricane Maria and continues to help where he is needed for those facing COVID, be it passengers stranded on a cruise ship or frontline workers battling the pandemic. A true helper, a hero. To give an example of how this selfless, compassionate man works, he arrived in Puerto Rico shortly after the storm and immediately began wrangling volunteers. He handed out sandwiches to the hungry and fed patients and staff at Puerto Rico's Hospital of Carolina. He even used his vast social media reach to try to locate missing relatives of those affected by the devastating storm. He not only got in-kind donations of food, he also works through his foundation World Central Kitchen to finance his efforts. You can donate here to help him. #chefsforpuertorico #worldcentralkitchen #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay 

Samuel Reynolds, a well-liked 16 year-old soccer player who has been described as “having a heart of gold” from Arlington, TX, was shot and killed two days after he stopped one boy from picking a fight with a younger boy. The bully (who is a minor) sought out Samuel afterwards, found out where he lived, confronted and shot him. Reynolds was transported to the hospital where he died of his wounds. Samuel was the only child of Madison Fletcher and family say they were tightly bonded. A GoFundMe has been set up by Samuel’s cousin to help his mother with expenses while she tries to cope with this devastating loss. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay (Photo: GoFundMe).

Muskegon Community College nursing faculty members Amy Herrington and Yolanda Burris, had traveled to Livonia, Michigan for an annual Nursing Student Assoc. Convention, and were in a workout room in their hotel when they heard screams: “There’s a baby in the bottom of the pool!” The two nurses looked at each other and jumped into action. Herrington, a mother of two kids, and Burris ran headlong to the pool. When they arrived they found the lifeless body of a boy (later identified as Kenvonte 'KJ' Thompson Jr.) and a woman struggling to give him CPR. They nurses quickly took over. “We didn’t think he was going to come back,’” Burris told local ABC affiliate Channel 13. “We were there for quite a while. I believe it was more than two minutes, but it felt like an eternity. We didn’t hear any breathing. He wasn’t responding.” But they persisted. “I remember thinking if this kid is not OK, then I am never going to be OK,” added Herrington, who took over CPR duties from Burris. The boy survived after being underwater for four minutes! A good reminder for everyone to learn CPR … and never give up. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay (Photos: Channel 13, WOOD-TV)

Mohamed Bzeek, a 63-year old immigrant from Libya who came to the states in 1978, has been fostering terminally ill children since 1995. He stays with them until the end of their lives, providing love and care. He has a 20 year-old son who is also sick with brittle bone disease. Since Mohamed’s wife (who was also a foster Mom) died, Bzeek has buried about 10 children but he knows this is God’s role for him— to care for the most vulnerable. He recently told a journalist, I have been asked, ‘Why do you do this?’ and the answer is simple. Even if these children cannot communicate or see or hear, they have a soul. They need somebody to love them. I tell them, ‘It will be okay — I am here for you. We will go through this together.’ “ #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

Affectionately known as “Mr. Bob” by the schoolchildren of Christ the King Catholic School, Bob Nill saved the lives of two brothers (ages 7 and 11) after urgently keeping them from going into the crosswalk as a driver approached. In doing so, he was struck and killed. Principal Cathy Fithian told the local media that he was “a blessing” for the local community. “He always thought about the kids more than himself,” she said. Nill was a member of the U.S. Coast Guard before being a banker. After his wife died, he decided to contribute to society and help kids and became a crossing guard. He left behind three sons. One of those sons told the Washington Post, ““He cared about how people would grow up and take responsibility for themselves and do things the right way. I think these kids picked that up. We all did.” Thank you, Mr. Nill and may God rest your soul in peace. (PHOTO: Christ the King Catholic School). #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero?

Tim Medvetz knows first-hand about descending into hell with pain and depression and how hard it is to climb back out. After being severely injured from a motorcycle accident, the former Hell's Angel member ended up in the hospital with two metal plates (and 20 screws) in his head, a steel mesh cage between his vertebrae, screws in his hand and knee and underwent 13 surgeries (seven screws) to reattach and save his left foot. He could have given up, but he didn't. During a hard convalescence, he was inspired by a book he read about the climb to Mt. Everest and was determined not only to survive but to climb that mountain. Remarkably, years later, he succeeded and has since climbed the highest mountain in each continent. Now, as co-founder of The Heroes Project, he works one on one with America's combat-injured war veterans to help bring them back in mind, body and spirit by conquering the mountain before them -- and inside of them. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by retired USMC PFC Isaac Blunt, a hero himself seen in the photo (above) in front of Medvetz on his way to the summit of Mt. Everest.

Cody Byrd was having breakfast before going to start his day as a graduate student at North Carolina A & T when he noticed something suspicious: a man watching an 8 year-old girl intently. When the little girl headed to the ladies room, the man got up and followed her. And that’s when Byrd walked after the man. When the bathroom door opened, the man reached out and tried to grab the little girl. That’s when Byrd faced off with the man, startling him. The attempted kidnapper then tried to get away but not before Byrd was able to take photos of him, then his car and license plate. “I was honestly thinking ‘should I try to grab him? Should I pull him down? And something popped into my head ‘no,’ just take some pictures and call 911,” Byrd told local network Fox61. The man was arrested and charged with first-degree kidnapping. As with most heroes, Byrd doesn’t think of himself as one. “I think I more just look at it as someone who was there doing their civil duty, helping someone when I saw a situation of danger.” (Photo: Khadejeh Nikouyeh/Greensboro News & Record) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Former NFL Football player Warrick Dunn has used his celebrity and success from his time playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Atlanta Falcons to help to buy homes for single parents (including furnishing them and stocking them with food). Who brought up this wonderful man? His mother Betty Smothers, who was an off-duty cop when she was senselessly murdered during a bank robbery when Dunn was only 18. He does this work to honor her. After his mother’s death, Dunn, the oldest of 6 children, helped raise his younger brothers and sisters. He knows all too well what it is to struggle. So, as he worked hard, and then gained fame and fortune, he gave back. He has started several charities under the Warrick Dunn banner to help financially challenged families thrive. To date, Dunn has been able to provide furnished homes for 169 families to positively impact 613 people. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Larry Lord, 60, who is a maintenance worker at LEAP, which is an organization in Framington, Maine that assists people with developmental, cognitive and intellectual disabilities, smelled a strong odor of gas in the building, called the fire department and then began evacuating people one by one. However, he didn’t make it out unscathed. The building blew up and Lord was burned over 50% of his body. He was then airlifted to Mass General in Boston where he remains in critical condition not only with severe burns but with multiple traumas that include broken bones. One of his friends told local news station WABI: “Larry's the type of guy that if he thinks someone is in trouble or if he thought someone was in danger, he would do everything within his power to make sure they were safe, including putting himself at risk. That's what he's done in this particular incident at a very large cost to him." His family is in Boston shouldering heavy costs and a GoFundMe has been set up here for the family who will spend the next four months living in hotels near the burn unit. National Heroes Day sends our prayers. (Photo: Lt. Joseph Sage). #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Mike Debartoli, a firefighter captain in Sacramento for 28 years who ran into burning buildings, saved lives and brought many children into this world, continued to fight on even though he had ALS. Despite the terminal illness, Debartoli repeatedly fought in the State's capital to help pass the state's 'Right to Try' law so that those who are terminal have the right to try medicines after the medication has gone through only Phase One of the FDA process (but not yet fully approved). The bill was passed by the Senate and then headed to the House for approval in all 50 states.

He was on the USAR team (Urban Search and Rescue) and was sent both to Oklahoma City after the bombing and to Ground Zero after 911 to help search for survivors. 

After awhile he could no longer go upstairs at his Tracy, CA home and had no handicap-assist bathroom. National Heroes Day featured the families’ verified GoFundMe until shortly after his death so the family could pay off bills. And we were able to secure a disability van for him, thanks to an angel benefactor in Beverly Hills, CA. After his death, his family passed the van to a boy with a serious brain disease who needed transportation to and from doctor visits. This is how the best of humanity works. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by caretaker Anthony Gordon, whose motto is "One Act of Love Can Change A Life For A Lifetime."

DART driver Josiah Davis stopped for gas and a little girl’s life changed forever. A 15 year-old girl approached Davis at a gas station in Dallas, and asked him for a safe place. Davis immediately brought her into the van and called dispatch. The girl, who was physically abused, most likely learned about DART and the SAFE PLACE program at school where children are taught to look for the SAFE PLACE symbol. DART is part of its network so the symbol is on their trains, vans and vans; workers have also been trained on exactly what to do if approached by anyone needing help. (Photo: Fox 4, Dallas) #WhoseYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Elijah Spaulding knew what to do in a dangerous situation. When he smelled smoke, he got up and ran to get his almost two year-old sister out of bed and then ran to his Mom’s room to wake her up. “He said, ‘Mommy, we got to get out,’ ” Mylinda Spaulding recounted to local NBC affiliate WVVA. “I said, ‘did you get your sister?’ and he had his sister in his arms.” Mrs. Spaulding said that she had taught her son to come to her if he ever saw anything dangerous. He did, and in learning that lesson, saved his family from a house fire. We salute not only four year-old Elijah, but also his parents, who taught him well. (Nominated by Mylinda Spaulding; Photo: KRON4) #WhosYourHero? #NationalHeroesDay

Douglas Miguel Rodriguez, a good man who not only strived to take care of his family but who also volunteered at his church where his wife taught, died senselessly at the Jersey City Kosher market shooting. Known for his wonderful disposition, Rodriguez had come to the U.S. from Ecaudor to seek a better life. He was working as a grocery store clerk on Dec. 10 when two shooters opened fire. Two of the people who came to grocery store that day were Haim Deutsch and his cousin Moshe, who was killed along with three others others. When Deutsch was wounded, he continued to the back of the store. That’s when Rodriguez saw him and helped him escape out the back door. He held the door for him and ushered him through before he himself was shot and killed. Deutsch survived. Our hearts break for all of the families of the deceased and those injured both physically and mentally. We honor the heroics of Mr. Rodriguez who, sadly, leaves behind his wife and daughter. #WhosYourHero #NationalHereoesDay

Like so many nurses across the country who have adopted their own patients (mostly babies in times of need), Piedmont Newnan Hospital ICU nurse Lori Wood did the same. But this was a little different. She was working her shift when she met 27 year-old patient Jonathan Pinkard, a patient at the hospital who needed a heart transplant but had no support system and therefore, did not meet the requirements for receiving a life-saving heart. He was autistic and had been raised by his grandmother who had passed away seven years earlier. His mother was in rehab and could not provide the kind of post-operative care needed for her son. Wood stepped up and into Pinkard’s life and — only two days after meeting him — and asked him if she could become his legal guardian so he could proceed with the heart transplant. “At some point, you know, God places people in situations in your life and you have a choice to do something about it,” Wood, 57, said in the hospital video. “I guess for me, with this situation, there was no choice … I had a room, I was a nurse, I could take care of him,” she recalled. “It wasn’t really anything I struggled about. It was just something that had to happen. He had to come home with me.” National Heroes Day salutes this big-hearted woman. (Photo: Piedmont Hospital) #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

Tyra Winters, a high school senior (and cheerleader) at Rockwall, TX high school, was on a float in her homecoming paradewhen she saw a mother (Nicole Hornback) frantic after her 2 year-old boy (Clarke) wasn’t breathing. He was choking on a piece of candy. Realizing the severity of the situation, Winters jumped off the float and ran over to the little boy.

"I see the kid. I see a little bright red face, and his mom is holding him up begging for help, screaming, asking, 'Someone help me. Someone help me,'" Winters told local news station KCBD. "My very, very first thought was like, 'Oh my God. I got to help this child.' “ Winters learned how to save a child in choking situations from her mother. "She taught me back thrusts, which works better on little ones, around 20, 30, 40 pounds," Winters explained. So she performed the Heimlich maneuver. We salute you, Tyra and your mother who taught you these life-saving skills. (Photos: Rockwall ISD, Steven Offield) #National Heroes Day #WhosYourHero

Twelve year-old Ben Theriot and his mother Nikki Fields were shopping in Tulsa when they came upon a toddler in a car seat crying inside a locked car in the parking lot. It was blazing hot outside so they knew the baby was in serious trouble. While someone called 911, Theriot took a rachet strap that he found in their own car and a piece of a clothing rack and started working on the window to bust it open. He was unable to do it, so went around to the windshield and started hitting it until it broke open. Thanks to Ben, the toddler was saved. Police said that inside the car, the heat index had risen to 116 degrees.(Photo: WJAX) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Marine Charles Childress, 56, was on a Riverside, CA highway when a shootout erupted between a police officer and a suspect. With bullets flying, he saw a bullet crack the window of the car ahead of him — a car driven by 31 year-old Jennifer Moctezuma who had her twin 6 year-old boys in car seats in the back. The bullet, she would later tell local news station KNBC, went straight through the middle of the windshield, past her and into the back seat where the boys were. Upon seeing this, Childress got out of his car and crawled to Moctezuma’s car and got the boys out of the car and made sure they were protected by situating them behind the engine block. to protect them. The shootout resulted in the tragic death of 33-year-old CHP officer Andre Moye. Condolences to his family and to the CHP. Mr. Childress, we salute your courage. (Photo: KNBC) #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

We honor David Alvah Johnson, who was with his wife and his 9 year-old granddaughter shopping at Walmart when a hatemonger with a gun came through the doors. As gunfire rang out, Johnson told his family to run and then used his body as a shield as best he could so they could get to safety. He was murdered. "It was the ultimate, selfless act," his nephew Dominic Partridge told the local newspaper. "That’s just who he was. He took care of his family until his last breath." No words. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

These are the faces of America and incredible stories of courage. Walmart employee and 36 year-old father Gilbert Serna who sheparded about 100 people out of the store to safety into a storage container when the shooting started in El Paso, TX on Aug. 3, 2019. Then he went back to save members of a girls’ soccer team who were fundraising outside. Adria Gonzalez, a 37 year-old assistant teacher and a regular customer at the store was shopping with her mother when the shooting started and was able to guide about 40 people to safety near the meat counter. And then there is Army Pfc Glendon Oakley who saw panicked children running around and grabbed them. He and another unnamed hero picked up as many kids as they could and rushed out safety. "I was just thinking about if I had a child and I wasn't around, how I would want another man to react if they saw my child running around," he said through emotion, talking to Fox affiliate KFox. "The spotlight should not be on me right now," he said. "I need the media to go out to the families and make sure they're OK ... I understand what I did was heroic, but I did that because that's what I was trained to do and that's what the military has taught me to do."

Meanwhile, children basketball coaches Jimmy Villatoro and Ramon Garcia drove to the scene to get kids out of harm’s way. These people are the very best of humanity. We honor the role models and all the heroes of the El Paso shooting known now and not known. Thank you. (PHOTOS: WKRN New 2, Liz Lopez, Army Pfc. Glendon Oakley. U.S. Army) #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

Heroes come in all sizes and ages. In this case, 8 and 69. Chance Blue, only 8 years old, saved his 10 year-old sister Skylar from a carjacking in Middletown, OH in an incredible act of courage. Their 69 year-old grandmother had gotten out of the car briefly at a medical center with the two kids in the car when a man jumped into the driver’s seat. The kids began screaming and the grandmother, Nina Coburn, heard them and ran headlong after the car, grabbing onto the driver’s side door. Inside, the carjacker yelled at the boy to get out. Chance fell out and then managed to get back to his sister and rip her out of the hands of the man who held onto her by her hoodie. Chance just was not leaving without his big sister. Neither was the grandmother who held onto the door and was dragged several feet before dropping to the pavement. #NationalHeroesDay honors you all. #WhosYourHero

These are only some of the young heroes from the school shootings which occurred both at UNC in Charlotte on April 30, 2019 and in Highlands Ranch, CO on May 7 of the same year at STEM. These young men — Kendrick Castillo, Riley Howell, Brendan Bialy and Joshua Jones — were murdered while charging and/or tackling the gunmen. In doing so, they saved countless lives. Howell, a pure-hearted, ROTC Cadet who was only 21, was shot twice at UNC in Charlotte but kept charging and knocked the shooter down before his life was taken away. In Colorado, Brendan Bialy (who was Marine Corps Delayed Entry Program) and his friends also charged the gunman and saved others. Joshua Jones was shot twice charging the gunman. Bialy was physically unharmed but Kendrick Castillo, only 18, was murdered as he lunged at the shooter. Castillo was supposed to graduate in only three days. National Heroes Day wanted to honor these young men, two of whom didn’t make it home, because they chose to save lives. Other heroes that students credit with engaging the shooters to help them escape are Jackson Gregory and Lucas Albertoni. (Photo credits: Wells Funeral Home, Brendan Bialy Instagram and Kendrick Castillo Facebook) #NationalHeroesDay #WhoseYourHero

Albert Madrid, 25, and his girlfriend were pulling into a trailer park in Highland, CA when they came upon a neighbor’s trailer up in flames. Albert jumped out of the car before it was even in park to run headlong into the home and got the entire family up and out, including a teen, a grandfather and two little girls, ages four and seven. They were all asleep. Tragically, he never made it out of the mobile home himself. A completely selfless young man, Albert Madrid died a hero for an entire family. NationalHeroesDay honors him and his incredible spirit. (Photo from KCAL) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Cross Scott, the lead shop technician at Jack Furrier Tire & Auto Care in Tucson, was on a test drive with one of the cars he was working on when he looked over to see another car pulled to the side of the road with the hazard blinkers on. That car was was slowly rolling backwards.. He pulled over, grabbed a large rock and jammed it under the tire, and then found the female driver slumped over her steering wheel, lips blue. He immediately sprang into action, breaking the back window and crawling in to giver her CPR. He told the local media that while he didn’t know CPR, he remembered an episode of “The Office” where Steve Carell’s character sang “Stayin’ Alive” while practicing CPR chest compressions on a dummy. The tempo of that song, apparently, is the right tempo for chest compressions, and he saved her life. Another song that works? “Baby Shark,” but “Stayin’ Alive” is far less annoying. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero?

(Photo credit: Mike Christy / Arizona Daily Star)

It was about 5:30 AM and everyone in the house was asleep in a home in Pine Bluff, Arkansas — everyone but second grader Kayden Moody who smelled smoke and immediately woke up his four year-old brother and then ran into his Mom’s room and got and her fiance up and got them and their five month-old baby out of the house. The seven year-old knew exactly what to do as the smoke filled the room . By the time he got to the door, he said he could barely breathe. The cause of the fire is believed to have begun from a faulty space heater (plugged in but turned off). Check your smoke detectors! Thank you to this small, but courageous hero. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero?

Bernadine Reed had been in her new job only 45 days when the bus she was driving full of schoolkids was hit from behind while they were waiting at a railroad crossing. When one of the kids yelled out that there was smoke, Reed hurriedly started directing children off the bus until they were all safe and a ways away. That’s when the bus burst into flames. “The only thought I had was getting them all out of the bus to safety,” said Reed, a former special education teacher from Maryland. She said that she didn’t think of herself as a hero. True heroes never do. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

In the dark, early morning hours of Oct. 30, Alivia Stahl, 10, and her two 6-year-old twin brothers Xzavier Ingle and Mason Ingle, left their home like any other day to catch the school bus on the side of the highway. After being waved to cross the highway by the driver of their school bus, they started across when suddenly, they looked up to see a car coming right at them. Alivia, always looking after her younger brothers, tried to shield them from harm. They were all hit as was another boy. Alivia, Xzavier and Mason were all killed while another boy, Maverick Lowe, suffered a slipped disk in his neck, broken ribs, a broken knee cap, fractures in his arm and wrist. His leg has rods and pins holding it together and he has had plastic surgery to reconstruct his face. A GoFundMe was posted here until they met their goal. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

Joe Flanigan and a number of his friends — David deRothschild among them — are some of those everyday heroes you rarely hear about. Flanigan’s home was lost in the fire and then went by boat back into the devastation with deRothschild and other friends to help out his neighbors and bring in some much-needed supplies. The very best of human nature. All of them. Thank you from #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero #MalibuFires #WoolseyFires (Photo taken from local ABC newscast)

Once the gunfire started in the Tree of Life Synagogue Or the L'Simcha Congregation in Pittsburgh, Rabbi Jeffrey Myers told everyone to get down on the floor, don’t move and don’t utter a sound. Then he began ushering those at the temple out of his sanctuary. He tried to get even more people out but could not help those in the back. Despite his own trauma, Myers steeled himself to preside over the funerals of the murdered. There were 11 killed and six injured, including four members of law enforcement #StrongerThanHate #LoveToPittsburgh #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

Jayla Pedersen, 7, smelled smoke in the morning in Park Rapids, MN and knew something was wrong. She woke up her Grandma Janelle and they started searching for the source of the smoke. That’s when they looked out the front window and saw a neighbor’s home on fire. They called 911. Janelle meanwhile sent her 27 year-old son Josh Pedersen in for rescue and he helped the elderly neighbors get away from the literal line of fire. An entire family of heroes, people of action. We thank you at #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero (Photo by Lorie Skarpness/Enterprise)

Savannah Lavely, only 3 years old, was on a walk with her Mom, Jessa and their dog when her mother suddenly collapsed on the sidewalk. Lavely immediately retraced their steps home — about a block and a half away — to alert her grandparents. A neighbor saw the woman on the ground experiencing a seizure and called 911 while the dog guarded over Jessa. Savannah ran up the steps to her house and brought her grandparents back to her Mom. How this little girl would remember where she lived and know what to do is both admirable and astonishing. We salute you. (Photo: WJBK) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Savannah Pritchet kept her cool when a woman walked into the Fresno, CA gas station where she works as a clerk and told Pritchet that she had been abducted and pleaded for help. Pritchet knew what to do. She immediately went over to the front doors and locked them and then sheparded the woman into the back bathroom and gave her a cell phone so that she could call 911. As to not to arouse suspicion, Pritchet then went back and unlocked the front door of the gas station mini-mart, allowing the alleged kidnapper in. He was none the wiser. After a few minutes, the Fresno police came in, guns drawn and arrested the purported kidnapper. We salute Pritchet for her quick thinking and incredible courage. (Photo credit: ABC) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Missy Pocock was mowing her grass outside her home in Rexburg, Idaho, which sits alongside a canal when she saw two girls pushing a baby stroller. One of the girls picked up a stick and playfully threw it to their dog. That’s when the dog brushed against the stroller, sending it plummeting into the raging and icy water of the canal, which was high because of the run-off from the mountains. The stroller landed upside down with the baby— face down and strapped inside. Pocock immediately went into action, jumping over a four-foot high fence and running into the canal where the little boy was completely submerged. Even though she was up to her chest in swirling water and in a lot of mud, she was able to bring him up, and when she did, his face was blue. She started hitting his back repeatedly to get the water from his lungs. She was bleeding and bruised, but the baby was saved. Pocock told one reporter that Divine Intervention helped her in the rescue, as did Angels. Takes one to know one. We salute your courage. (Photo credit: Idaho State Journal) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Science Teacher Jason Seaman acted quickly when a student in his classroom pulled out two handguns and began shooting in his 7th grade classroom in the Noblesville, Indiana Middle School. The former Southern Illinois University/Carbondale lineman immediately charged the student and was shot three times. Another student was also wounded. "Our science teacher immediately ran at him, swatted a gun out of his hand and tackled him to the ground," seventh-grader Ethan Stonebraker told The Associated Press. "If it weren't for him, more of us would have been injured for sure." Both Seaman and the student were in critical condition at a local hospital but later survived. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero #IndianaShooting

Today, we honor Aaliyah Inghram, a Fourth Grader in Las Vegas, NV. She and her mother Samantha Tygrit were shopping at Walmart and packing up the car when a gun fight broke out in the parking lot. Aaliyah’s 18 month year-old brother and small cousin were already in the car so the 10 year-old hero threw herself over the two to protect them both. She was shot by a stray bullet, but survived. Her mother was also shot in the shoulder trying to get to the kids when she realized her daughter had already protected the children. Both Mother and daughter are in good shape, at least physically. They will celebrate a blessed Mother’s Day today. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero #AaliyahInghram #10YearOldHero

James Shaw, Jr., 29, was in a Waffle House in Nashville, TN when a man came in and began shooting, killing four people. When the shooter stopped to reload, Shaw jumped into action and grabbed the hot barrel of the AR-15 and wrestled it away. Police said if it weren’t for Shaw’s heroics, there would have likely been more deaths and injuries. Afterwards, Shaw then launched a GoFundMe to help pay for funerals for the deceased. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Tony Nehmi and another man Officer James Dalton saw smoke billowing out of a dance studio in Edgewater, NJ. He said he thought nothing of it until he saw little girls at the window trying to break it with their phones. He ran towards the flames, and he and another man climbed a ladder and broke the window to get the girls out just as the flames were approaching. One little girl, 12, had blisters on her shoulders --that's how close these kids were to death. Had these two men, one of them Nehmi, not done what they had done that day, many families would have been devastated and generations of families lost. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Anthony Borges, 15, took action when a gunman entered the Marjory Stoneman Douglas School and ended up saving about 20 other students when he slammed the door to the classroom and attempted to lock the door. He was shot five times -- in his back and in both legs and his left upper thigh bone was shattered. He is recovering in the hospital and this is a verified GoFundMe that is still helping with his medical bills, multiple surgeries and rehab. #LoveToParkland #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay @NatlHeroesDay

Assistant football coach/security guard Aaron Feis, 37, shielded his students during the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL. Feis, who graduated from the school in 1999, died of his wounds during surgery in a nearby hospital. Feis was known as a kind soul who known to always put others before himself. #LoveToParkland #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay @NatlHeroesDay

On April 16, 2007, 76 year-old Virginia Tech engineering professor Liviu Librescu held the door of his classroom as a gunman tried to enter. He shouted to his 23 students to get out while he was shot through the door. As kids jumped out of windows, Librescu was able to hold the door after being shot over and over again. He was shot five times -- one of 32 killed during one of this country's most deadly mass shootings. Because of his heroic actions, all but one student made it out alive. A child during World War II, Librescu had survived the Holocaust in a Jewish ghetto in Romania, while his father was sent to a forced labor camp. After the war, Librescu studied aeronautical engineering. He and his family eventually immigrated to Israel where he taught engineering at Tel-Aviv University before becoming an American citizen and making Blacksburg, VA a permanent home. “Professor Librescu died as he lived, devoted to his students and to his profession,” said Dr. Ishwar Puri, head of the ESM department at VA Tech. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by David Cariens, author of six books, including Va Tech: Make Sure It Doesn't Get Out and The America We All Want

Sofia Patel, 7, was at a neighbor's party when a toddler fell into the swimming pool. She saw him and didn't hesitate to dive for him and grab his hand and worked hard to pull him back up. The little boy was at the bottom of the pool. She was able to pull him to the lowest step in the pool and then adults grabbed the boy and his parents started CPR. Patel started swimming at only three years old at the Houston Swim Club. She told KHOU 11 News: "It makes me happy that I saved someone's life." (Photo: KHOU 11 News) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Svetlana Reut was at home in Loganville, GA when she saw three dogs on top of her 9 year-old neighbor boy in full attack. She immediately ran to the boy and started pulling the dogs off of him as they were biting him about the face and neck. She suffered injuries to her head face and arms when the dogs turned on her. She was hospitalized while the little boy was airlifted to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta with severe injuries and lacerations to his face and neck. If not for Reut, he probably would have died. (Photo by WSBTV-Atlanta) #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Arturo Melendez was driving on an Iowa highway when he saw a woman in a car sitting on the side of the road. He pulled over and quickly realized something was wrong. Swinging into action, he broke out the window and pulled Vicki Witte out of the car. Her heart had stopped as she had gone into cardiac arrest. That's when Melendez began CPR and kept her alive. She ended up the hospital where she recovered. The Witte family has a GoFundMe page established to help with the medical expenses. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Gloria Lewis is a waitress from Barbados who now lives in Ft. Lauderdale. Out of her modest home with the help of her husband and son, she began Care in Action USA and every single week, she prepares almost 500 nutritious meals for the local homeless. She puts the meals in styrofoam containers and includes a proverb or a quote from the Bible along with them to bring not only food but also hope to those less fortunate. She puts the meals into her car on Saturdays and Sundays and spends each day handing out meals and praying with the men and women. She has no big funding or sponsors, but still she works to bring love and hope so people know that they -- which includes veterans of war -- have not been forgotten. She was once homeless herself. She works as a full-time waitress at Ruven's in Delray Beach, FL. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by Rotimi Rainwater, director of "Lost In America," a powerful, new feature documentary about our country's homeless youth. (Photo by Rotimi Rainwater)

Joshua Nowlan, a Navy veteran created a human shield for his newly married's friends bride when a shooter opened fire in a movie theater in Aurora, CO. on July 20, 2012. That brave decision cost him dearly as his calf and arm were basically blown off. After going through seven surgeries, this single father of two boys is now showing the world yet again the definition of courage. Nowlan decided to go through with an amputation of his own leg from the knee down to alleviate a life of chronic pain. He did so but it wasn’t without complications. Still, he pressed on. Today, he is running and working out. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay #LoveToAurora

Look for the helpers: P.C. "Pastor Chris" Williams and the volunteers at God's Garage are angels for widows, single Moms, wives of our deployed military men and those in need. They repair cars for free and fix others and give them away. The business, a non-profit started up seven years ago after PC Williams saw a mother and daughter walking down a long road from church because their car had been in the shop for months. He prayed, begged and borrowed to open a shop to repair cars to help others in need. He and they have changed the lives of hundreds of people. God's Garage doing God's work. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Brendan Kelly is a U.S. Marine who went into action when the mass shooting started in Las Vegas, shielding a woman he did not know from with his own body. 23 year-old Renee Cesario and Kelly had only met two hours earlier at the Route 91 Harvest Festival concert before a gunman opened fire into the crowd of 22,000 on Oct. 1. Kelly pushed Cesario on the ground and covered her until there was a pause in the gunfire, he then got her on her feet and led her out, saving her life. We salute you, Mr. Kelly. Semper Fi. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

(Photo from Jenn Cesario)

Jonathan Smith, 30, saved many lives during the Las Vegas shooting before getting shot himself. The copy machine repairman had traveled from Orange County to Las Vegas to celebrate his brother's birthday with nine members of his family. When the shooting began, Smith tried to get his entire family out  but they separated and fled. But he saw others in danger and began helping them find a way out. He pulled many people to safety before getting hit in what was literally a war zone. Hailed a hero, Jonathan told reporters, "“I don’t see myself that way. I would want someone to do the same for me." #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Jack Beaton from Bakersfield, CA died Oct. 1 while shielding his wife Laurie from gunfire at the Route 91 Harvest Festival mass shooting in Las Vegas. When the shooting started, Beaton, 54, yelled to his wife, "Get down, get down, get down!" and then laid on top of her body and successfully protected her life. His last words to her: "I love you, Laurie." Jack and Laurie were celebrating their 23rd wedding anniversary that day. He is also survived by a 20-year-old son and 18-year-old daughter. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

James "Sonny" Melton, 29, from Big Sandy, TN and his wife Heather were married for only about a year and a half when they were enjoying the music at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas on Oct. 1. When the shooting started, Sonny grabbed her from behind and started running putting his hands on her shoulders and always kept his own body between her and the hail of bullets. He was shot in the back but saved his wife. He was said to be a kind and good-natured man, a registered nurse who worked in the emergency department at Henry County Medical Center. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Erick Silva, 21, was a security guard at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas when bullets started raining down on the concert-going crowd. He stayed and helped people get out, helping them jump over a barricade. He was shot in the head on Oct. 1 as he worked to save others through the security company, Contemporary Services Corp. “He could have run but he didn’t,” Gregorio De La Rosa, his stepfather, said in Spanish  at his funeral. “In a hard moment, he gave up his life. We’re very proud.” Added his mother, “I’m sure if he could save more lives, he would have.” #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

When the shooting started in Las Vegas at the RT. 91 Harvest Festival on Oct. 2, 2017. Chris Hazencomb, 44, of Camarillo, CA was shot in the head while protecting his best friend's wife from gunfire. He loved the Los Angeles Rams and was a graduate of Thousand Oaks High School. He was taken off life support. We honor you, sir, and the family who raised such an incredible person. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Jeffrey 'Shaun' Andexler, 30, a father of five was killed on his son's 9th birthday trying to save one of his other sons from tragedy. The Andexler family had ventured out to a haunted house outside of Nashville, TN in two separate cars to celebrate the 9 year-old's birthday. On the way back, the car behind his -- in which his 11 year-old son Jaden was a passenger -- got into an accident on Hwy I-40. Suddenly, then the car started rolling down an embankment.

This young father saw it in his rearview mirror, pulled over, got of his car and started running headlong to save his son without a thought about his own safety. That's when he was hit and killed by a passing vehicle. His death was witnessed by his other children and his wife Ashlee who told the local news stations, "He was running on adrenaline. It happened so quick and in front of our entire family, all of our kids. I can’t sleep." The family had to start a GoFundMe to help with funeral expenses. Our hearts are with the entire family. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

John Phippen, 56, and his son, Travis, 24, from Santa Clarita, CA both braved the gunfire to save others at the Las Vegas shooting On Oct. 1. John crawled to those shot and used belts to tie tourniquets around wounds to stem the bleeding. Travis, an EMT, was shot in the arm but continued to help victims using his training to help about 14 others. John Phippen covered another woman with his body and was shot in the back.. “I got over there as fast as I could and I put my arm around him,” he said and he and another person pulled his Dad out of the line of fire. John Phippen's last words were about love, said heroic son about his heroic father: “He told me that he loved me and he wanted everybody to know how much he loved them." Life is always and only about love. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Joshua Evola in Dallas and his brother Jonathan who was visiting from San Diego, decided on Sunday, Aug. 27, to go help the victims in Houston. Jonathan was set to go back to with his family in CA when his brother, having watched what was happening on TV, turned to him and said, "We're going to Houston." They got in the car and drove seven hours, got there about midnight and got on a boat and just started helping. At the end of their adventure, they had rescued about 200 people our of the dark and cold. Joshua Evola said that "God put it in my heart" to go down there. And like a true hero, he then thanked people "in the background who have been giving others shelter and food." Just two of the hundreds of ordinary people doing extraordinary things for others along the Texas coast. #HurricaneHarveyHeroes #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay 

This group of volunteers who are nicknamed 'The Cajun Navy' came from Louisiana and other places to help rescue those stranded in the rising waters of Houston, Port Arthur and other areas along the coast.

With hundreds of boats - over 760 - and upwards of 1,600 volunteers from Louisiana (many from the Acadiana region), Missouri and Texas, they set out as search and rescue using their own fishing boats.

Three of the men of this volunteer armada -- Josh Lincoln, Ricky Berrigan and Donnie Davenport -- saved 73 year-old Wilma Ellis whose lifeless body was face down in floodwaters. They raised her out of the water and resuscitated her and got her to dry land.

One by one, in the dark cold, The Cajun Navy continued to rescue families, the disabled and elderly out of nursing homes and others until they themselves were exhausted. As Pastor Louis Husser from Louisiana said to one reporter: "When we were in trouble 12 years ago, Texans came down to help, and so we are just loving our neighbor back.”

Their efforts have been praised by Texas Gov. John Bel Edwards. They are true American heroes and we thank them, too. #HurricaneHarveyHeroes #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay 

We honor Colette Sulcer, 41, of Beaumont, a mother who gave her life to save her daughter Jordyn Grace. As best as rescuers could explain, Colette and Jordyn Grace were in the car driving on a service road as waters began rising. Colette left the car with her daughter to try to get to safety. They got swept up and were dangerously near a trestle when rescuers found the 3 year-old clinging to the lifeless body of her mother, visible by a little pink backpack above the water. Rescuers (heroes themselves) arrived right before they were swept under. Colette, we honor your courage and unconditional love. A Go Fund Me had been set up to help little Jordyn, who said while they were in the water her Mama was "saying her prayers." #HurricaneHarveyHeroes #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

They came from L.A., Vegas, Texas and Co. They saw and they are conquering. LA-based Merging Vets and Players, CO-based Mountain Primal Meat Co. and the First Baptist Church in Porter, TX joined together to help surrounding areas hard hit by Hurricane Harvey where help and hope was much needed as so many focused on Houston. And they won't stop.

Heraclio “Jr.” Aguilar, Erick “Doc” Andino, Dustin Beluscak, David Gregory, Dustin Holcomb, Noel Huerta, Desiree Hunt, Bill Miller, Denver Morris (acting director of MVP who spearheaded the initiative), Robyn Nolin, Oren O'Neal (former NFL Raider), Christopher Rogers, Isaac Saldivar along with Mountain Primal Meat Co.’s John Maas, Joshua and Mike Aikens and Trevor Johnson, and the First Baptist Church's Jennifer Hallmark and Veteranology CEO/host Junyer Knight all pulled together to help victims in Deweyville, Orange, Kingwood, and Beaumont, TX.

They did everything -- delivered supplies, rescued people and animals, and ripped out damaged carpets and furnishings while Maas provided the four, 16-foot flat-bottomed boats and flatbed trucks. One flood victim was a 75 year-old widow whose house was on 9-foot stilts yet still had four feet of water inside. “I spent a year in Iraq during wartime, and the devastation is right on par with that ... and then add in raw sewage from septic tanks that overflowed,” noted teammate and Army vet Holcomb, who said that while they were all taking the antibiotic Cipro, one of their men took ill from wading through the sewage.

They returned home on Monday to rest and refuel, but a new team is heading back to Texas this weekend, having set up a fundraiser to help continue their efforts. #HurricaneHarveyHeroes #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by Derek McLay

Her shirt says "Brave" and that is exactly what 10 year-old Kiera Vera Larsen was. When she saw a driverless SUV rolling backwards down a driveway into the path of two-year-old Emmah Gusich, Kiera ran and pushed the toddler out of the way only to be struck herself. Kiera later died of the injuries she sustained. The elementary school girl with the beautiful life spirit will forever be remembered as a true hero. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Marcus Grimmie traveled with, and played guitar for, his singer-songwriter sister Christina Grimmie, who finished in the Top 3 on The Voice season six. As a devoted big brother, Marcus toured all over with Christina, which included a 17-country tour in Europe in 2015. Marcus was at his sister's side in Orlando, FL when she was signing autographs and meeting with fans after opening for the pop rock band Before You Exit on June 10, 2016.

Without warning, an obsessed/psychotic man walked up and fired 5 shots at 22 year-old Christina and into surrounding fans. Marcus reacted immediately and without fear. His only thought was to prevent harm to others, and he used his own body to prevent the shooter’s advance, knocking the assailant's arm and weapon away as he tackled him to the ground. Without the quick actions of Marcus in the face of unforeseeable danger, much greater harm could have come to innocent bystanders.

The Orlando Police Dept. called him a hero. Two of Christina's fans that night Sidney and Stephanie MacGillivray said, "He saved both of us and everyone else in attendance that night. In trying to save his sister, Marcus saved many lives, and we all owe it to him for his bravery in that split second." Added Dr. Mark McDonough, a hero himself who gave CPR to Christina until paramedics arrived: "Along with many others, I am also grateful for his selfless act of heroism."

The Grimmie family has since set up the Christina Grimmie Foundation to help both victims of gun violence and of breast cancer. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by Dr. Mark D. McDonough, father to the 3 boys in the band Before You Exit; also honored by Sidney and Stephanie MacGillivray, two of the fans in line that night who benefited from and witnessed Grimmie's bravery.

Heather Heyer, 32, died on Aug. 13 in Charlottesville, VA while protesting against hate and racism. She was killed after a man drove his car into the counterprotesters against "Unite the Right" rally of white nationalists (which included neo-nazis). Nineteen others were also injured in the hate crime. Two troopers -- VA State Police Lt. H. Jay Cullen and Trooper-Pilot Berke M.M. Bates -- died in a helicopter crash on their way to assist other officers who were trying to maintain public safety. Heyer has been described by friends and family as a person who lived to help others -- a strong-willed woman who fought for fairness and justice. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

In 2012, stay-at-home Moms Dawn Chapman, Karen Nickel and Beth Strohmeyer got together because something was clearly wrong in their neighborhood. Children were getting sick with brain tumors and other cancers. There was an odd smell being emitted from the ground. It prompted Nickel, a Mom and Grandmother, to launch the West Lake Landfill Facebook Group to start talking about it. What their research found was that they were all living on a Superfund site where waste from a uranium-processing center for the Atomic bomb was deposited -- near Bridgeton, MO. Chapman and Nickel have since mobilized other Moms via Just Moms to get answers and fight for their kids and neighborhoods. And, they refuse to stop until the EPA either fully removes the waste or permanently relocates residents living nearest the landfill. There is a documentary in the works outlining their efforts called, very appropriately, Atomic Moms. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by Anonymous (Photo courtesy of Christen Commuso)

Clockwise from top left, these are some of the most courageous heroes of the Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting. Rachel D'Avino, 29, a therapist for autistic children who bravely shielded her students the best she could when a gunman opened fire in the mass shooting; Victoria Soto, 27, first-grade teacher, who like Rachel, died trying to shield her students from gunfire hiding them as best she could; Lauren Rousseau, 30, a substitute teacher who rushed her children into the back bathroom in an effort to save their lives; Mary Sherlach, 56, school psychologist who ran towards the sound of gunfire to try to save lives only to be killed; Anne Marie Murphy, 52, special-education teacher who held little Dylan Hockley in her arms to try to save him and they were both killed; and Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung, 47, principal of the school who heard the gunfire and ran towards it down the hallway, pushing a student into the bathroom saving his life before her life was taken from her. We honor you all who gave the ultimate sacrifice. #NationalHeroesDay #WhosYourHero

While vacationing on Catalina Island, Sarah Hotchkiss and Natalie Smith were in bed in the early morning hours on the Hotchkiss family boat when they heard a woman crying for help. The two girls quickly got out of bed, grabbed a flashlight, got into their dinghy and began searching the harbor. They soon found an elderly woman on a sailboat waving her arms for help as her 70 year-old husband clung to the side of the boat, his foot wrapped tightly with a rope as he was struggling to keep his head above water. The girls sided up along the sailboat and -- while keeping an eye on the man so he wouldn't go under -- went to work on trying to slacken the rope. In minutes, the man was free. "It was scary," Hotchkiss told the Acorn Times. She said that they just both followed their instincts. "I felt like his life was in my hands so if I didn't do something, I don't know what would have happened." #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by Catherine in Camarillo, CA (photo, courtesy of Bobby Curtis, Acorn Newspapers)

Vickie Williams-Tillman, 56, was driving when she noticed a police officer (Officer Billie Amie) in an argument with another man. She stopped to see if the officer needed help and could see in his eyes that he was in trouble. At that moment, the man jumped onto the police officer and took his baton and started hitting him in the head. That's when Williams-Tillman called 911, got out of the car and jumped on the back of the criminal as he tried to get the officer's gun. The officer credits her for saving his life. The grandmother told the local news, "It was just an instinct. God led the way." #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by a Mom in San Ramon, CA

Tom Miller, from Granite City, IL, was swimming in the Black River in MO with his wife and friends near a roadway bridge when suddenly a woman began screaming. Looking over, they saw a woman in the water holding a baby; she was terrified, panicked as her five-year-old girl was face down in the river and being sucked into a culvert pipe that ran under the road. Although the girl was wearing a life perserver, it was no match for the powerful force of the rushing water. Risking his own life, Miller made a beeline to the girl. He reached her, pulling her up and out to save her life while battling through the currents himself. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by Dave and Beth Uhercik

Steve Bales, a 26 year-old NASA flight controller had the responsibility of monitoring Eagle's guidance system during Apollo 11's eleven-and-a-half minute descent to the moon. If any problems occurred, Bales had the authority and responsibility to call an abort. As astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin descended, there were manageable issues until the primitive, 1969 computer began signaling a series of 'program alarms' indicating an 'executive overflow'; the machine was relaying that it was being asked to do too much, too fast and was dropping what it deemed less important calculations. This was a "go/no-go" situation just a few thousand feet above the moon. Bales had only seconds to decide whether or not to call an abort. With both fuel and time running out, it was up to Bales to decide if these alarms warranted stopping the first try at a moon landing. Bales recognized it was not a show-stopper, quickly consulted with his 'back room' team to confirm and gave flight controller Gene Kranz-- and the Apollo 11 crew 240,000 miles away hurtling toward the moon-- the 'go,' to ignore the alarms and proceed to land. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by D.C. of Escondido, CA

There were 400,000 Americans who worked on the Apollo Program. In fact, the entire space program of that era was populated with heroes -- from those who designed, tested and rode the massive rockets to the nimble-fingered seamstresses who hand-stitched space suits, to Mission Control, training and recovery crews, admin and support staff. Because of these Americans from NASA, the military, private industry and academia, the U.S. won the space race by putting Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon July 20, 1969 while astronaut Michael Collins orbited above. The teams did it ahead of schedule and under budget. They all had to do their jobs correctly to get Eagle to the safe landing in the Sea of Tranquility 48 years ago today while the calm, heroic Apollo 11 crew of Armstrong and Aldrin became the first humans to set foot on a four billion year-old moon. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by filmmaker Ted Melfi whose Hidden Figures was nominated for three Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Jayda Bell sprang into action after her 23 year-old sister Kindalynn had a seizure while driving with her and her two year-old niece on an Arkansas highway. With Kindalynn unable to function, Jayda was scared but kept her head and managed to push her sister's foot down on the brake to stop the car. "I told her don't die on me because she's my favorite sister, of course ... she's been my whole life," Jayda said. After the car came to a stop, the brave girl put the car into neutral, jumped out and got her baby niece out of the car seat to safety. When the car began to roll a little, Jayda used her body to try to stop it and called 911. Kindalynn calls Jayda her Guardian Angel. We call her a true hero. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

(Photo, courtesy of the Bell family).

Richard Jewell, the then 33 year-old security guard at the Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta saved lives on July 27, 1996, when he alerted the police to a suspicious backpack which was was later found to be filled with pipe bombs during Olympic festivities. He began evacuating as many people as he could from the area before the bombs suddenly exploded into the crowd. One person was killed and 111 injured while another person later died a heart attack. But it was Jewell whose keen observations saved lives that day as the death toll in the park would surely have been higher.

This real American hero then endured the unthinkable: He was falsely accused as the perpetrator (which he was not), and he had to shoulder unbelievable stress as his good name was dragged through the mud. He was later exonerated, but the toll on his life was tremendous. Richard Jewell died young, at the age of 44, but he is one of America’s true national heroes. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by Anita M. Busch, journalist

Lindell Marbut, who uses a cane to walk, acted quickly when a car took a turn too fast, hit a curb and it ended up upside down and burning on his front lawn in Burleson, TX. While his caretaker Sondra Young ran inside to call 911, Lindell pulled the 22 year-old driver out of the car and into the garage. Then he went right back to the burning car and began hitting on the window with his cane to try to smash the window to get the passenger out. Together with his caretaker, they pulled the second woman to safety before firefighters arrived. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Osbaldo Rodriguez and his 9 year-old son were riding their bicycles along an aqueduct path when his son lost control and ended up careening into the water. Osbaldo jumped off his bike and ran into the water to save his son. He got his son to safety but then Osbaldo struggled to stay afloat. Although he knew how to swim not but well, he made the ultimate sacrifice for love. His son had recently graduated to a two-wheel bicycle from his training wheels. Both his family and law enforcement in the Sheriff’s office in San Bernardino County, CA, called Osbaldo a true hero. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Five years ago, Los Angeles Criminal Courts Judge Craig Mitchell (pictured above in tank top) founded the Skid Row Running Club, which is now the subject of a new documentary, Skid Row Marathon that just won both the Audience Award and Best Doc at the Los Angeles Film Festival. Early in his life, Mitchell actually considered becoming a priest but went into law instead. Still, he found a way to do God’s work: Before going to work, he goes down to L.A.'s infamous Skid Row and gathers together those battling to maintain sobriety from drug and alcohol addiction (which is heroic itself). And they run. The Club helps them get their confidence back and maintain sobriety. Mitchell then pushes them to get into shape and takes them to run marathons around the globe. His thinking is that one cannot run a marathon without discipline -- and that means maintaining sobriety. Through the Running Club, he has helped scores of people overcome addiction and homelessness. We -- and the hundreds who he has helped get back on their feet – salute Judge Craig Mitchell. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by Judge Paul Suzuki (photo, courtesy of Skid Row Marathon)

Shanta Jordan was seriously injured in Bridgeport, CT when she jumped in front of an oncoming, careening car in an effort to save a little boy from being killed. The out of control car slammed into Jordan whose body took most of the impact against a brick wall. Had it not been for her selfless act, the little boy (who is under 10 years old) would not have survived. Both are in the hospital as of June 10, 2017, but are going to survive. We pray for you both. Black Entertainment Television has drawn attention to a Go Fund Me set up to help this hero pay her medical bills. Ms. Jordan, thank you for your bravery and selflessness. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

Patricia Maisch, the late Bill Badger (in photo) and Roger Salzgeber were at the Safeway grocery store in Tucson when a gunman opened fire, killing 5 adults and nine-year old Christina-Taylor Green during a meet and greet with U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords (one of 13 injured that day). Badger, a 74 year-old retired Army Colonel and Salzgeber -- who just witnessed his friend Gabe Zimmerman get shot in the head and killed -- didn't hesitate. Salzgeber turned and ran headlong towards the gunman without a thought about his own safety and he and Badger (who had been shot) tackled the shooter, both nearly landing on Maisch as she lay on the ground. Maisch then grabbed the ammo clip away from the shooter. Prior to, Mary Reed was shot three times covering her daughter. Dorwan Stoddard died while trying to shield his wife. Kenneth Dorushka was shot after he pushed his wife out of the line of gunfire, and George Morris was shot as he tried to save his wife who died. Bystander Joseph Zamudio then joined Badge, Salzgeber and Maisch in holding the killer on the ground until law enforcement arrived. Across the parking lot, a 20-year old intern named Daniel Hernandez tended to Giffords and kept her alive by propping her up so she didn't choke on her own blood. There were many other heroes that day, and we thank them all. #WhosYourHero #NationalHeroesDay

-- honored by Caren Teves