In my life I would have to say that my hero would be my Dad. He has had to undergo multiple hospital stays in his life and still he always kept a positive attitude. When ever I would go to see him when he was in the hospital he would care soo much more about my day than telling me about his progress, when really it was me that should be asking how he is doing. There was never a time when he let his health get in the way of doing something we me. One time was when, he took me down to the state XC meet last year even though he knew that standing out in the cold would not be that much fun for him for his very poor blood circulation to his hands. Even knowning this he still wanted to take me down for the meet. He ended up watching the race but then spending the rest of time in the car trying to warm up his hands. This is one of the reasons why my Dad is my hero. Know write you own. To share with the team. All entries will remain Name-free unless you put your name in this box. A lot of people come to mind. Right now the person that comes to mind is my friend Raj Chittal. Raj sits next to me in Physics and in addition to being super positive and funny he's also someone you know you can trust and count on. He proved that to me today. A couple weeks ago I decided to shave my head for St. Baldricks. I remember him telling me he thought that was great, and that he wanted to grow his hair out for the rest the school year. Today was my day to turn in the money I raised and get my head shaved, but I was unable to attend. Raj knew that I couldn't be there so he called me and told me he would like to fill in for me. I was thrilled he would do such a thing, especially considering the fact that he wanted to grow his hair out. I told him he didn't have to, but it was something he wanted to do. It really stood out to me as a selfless act and I'm proud to be friends with Raj. -Kyle Gibson my heros would be all of my coaches for motivating me to try my best and not give up Many names come to mind when I think of the heroes that inspires me to push myself to my limit. The first would have to be Merlin Boone. His unyielding work ethic was something to admire. I could clearly see the results of his hard work whenever he ran a 400. Every time he shot out of the blocks, everyone knew he was going to be leading everybody else. There was no question about it. It was the confidence that he and the team had from the hard work he put in everyday. Next I would have to say Vince Morici. During his senior year, he became a key athlete on the team. It was said that in the previous years that he was not someone the stood out. he even told me his times and distances he got in his previous seasons. I found it amazing that he had improved that much. At that time, my times and distances were insignificant as well. I only made one invite that season. I thought about giving up until I talked to him. He kept encouraging me to stay with track. I decided to do it. Next season, I made sectionals and it was because Vince Morici taught me what perseverance really meant. Finally, I would like to mention Alex Lapides. In the 4 X 400, he would usually be the anchor and rightfully so. The job of the anchor is to take the race no matter what situation he was put in when the baton was passed to him. Every time Alex had the baton in his hand, he showed heart. He always pushed his limits for the team. I remember at either sectionals or DVC, he received the baton near last place. He pulled his relay and placed against all the odds. That took heart. I consider myself very fortunate to have ran with all three of them my freshman year. They made a positive impact on me and I am still striving to be more like them everyday. - Quang Trang My grandfather is my hero. He served in the Marine corps during WWII, and is the bravest person I know. He was shot down twice and flew over 150 successful missions in the Philippines, and lost his leg due to complications from a wound after the war. He's no longer with us, but his military ethic definitely made an impact on my life as well as my dad's life. I would be honored to take after him and serve in the military one day. (continued from above) My grandmother on the other side of my family could also be considered a hero in my life. She raised my mom and her three other siblings as a single mom and made constant sacrifices so that one day, her children could go to college. Because of the actions of those before me, I feel obligated to take after them in life. -Charlie Dunk