Hometown Hero - Page 4

Hometown Heroes are people who serve other people, their community, and take pride in honoring, restoring, preserving, or celebrating an aspect of American hometown life, be it their work, passion, or pastime.

Racing to Inspire Others

by Sheryl Kayne

In 1977, 15-year-old Rick Hoyt of Sturbridge, Mass. (pop. 8,860), brought home a flyer from school for a 5-mile footrace to benefit a lacrosse player paralyzed in an accident.

first appeared: 10/28/2007

A Passion for Planting Trees

by Andy Leheny

Several thousand trees in and around Davenport, Iowa, wouldn’t be shading and beautifying the city if not for the efforts of Michael Giudici, 54, an arborist with a mission.

first appeared: 10/21/2007

Instilling Values on Horseback

by Karen Karvonen

Michael McMeel, 57, remembers one of the first places where he gained self-confidence, learned respect and experienced magic.

first appeared: 10/14/2007

Leading an Inspired Life

by Beverly Burmeier

On his daughter Lana's wedding day in 1994, Bill Hyche surprised her with a special gift he had been working on since she left home to attend college five years earlier.

first appeared: 10/7/2007

Building Reservation Homes

by Denise Glaser Malloy

Robert Young once was a successful Seattle business owner who thought poverty was "someone else's responsibility."

first appeared: 9/30/2007

Healing with Rhythm

by Nancy Henderson

Eddie Tuduri of Carpinteria, Calif., coaxes his new friends to sit in a circle facing congas and bongos.

first appeared: 9/23/2007

Carving Totems for Healing

by Heather Larson

As he chips away at the 300-year-old log in his yard on the Lummi Indian Reservation, the outline of a salmon takes shape with each slice of his homemade carving tool.

first appeared: 9/2/2007

Little Girl, Big Heart

by Tracy Leinberger-Leonardi

When Kennedy Kulish's baby brother, Kaeden, was born in 2003 with a hole in his heart, she spent a lot of time in hospital waiting rooms watching other children and their parents come and go.

first appeared: 8/26/2007

Sharing Lunch Boxes & Packing Lunches

by Lori B. Murray

Rows of lunch boxes line the shelves at Etta's Lunchbox Cafe in New Plymouth, Ohio.

first appeared: 8/19/2007

Sweetheart Behind the Wheel

by Judy Woodward Bates

For Grigsby, who's logged almost a million miles behind the wheel, driving a school bus is a family tradition.

first appeared: 8/5/2007

Rescuing Champion Racehorses

by Alanna Nash

"Just look at this boy," says Michael Blowen, gazing with pride across a Kentucky pasture at Ogygian, a champion 24-year-old stallion.

first appeared: 7/15/2007

For the Love of Music

by Susan Stets

Joe Blewett, 84, cradles his oboe like an old friend while, several rows back, 13-year-old Lauren Long delicately holds her triangle...

first appeared: 6/10/2007

Camping for the Blind

by Chris McGonigle

On a brilliant summer day along the Bitterroot River in southwestern Montana, Lauren Beyer, 11, touches a frog for the first time.

first appeared: 6/3/2007

Reverend of the Rodeo

Former bareback bronc champion Todd Pierce still gets nervous when he steps into a rodeo arena, but his fear has nothing to do with riding a bucking horse without a saddle or reins.

first appeared: 5/13/2007

Treating the Troops

by Sandy Summers

Two heavy-duty mixers rest on Jeanette Cram’s kitchen countertop in Hilton Head Island, S.C. (pop. 33,862), waiting to prepare dozens of chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin or snickerdoodle cookies.

first appeared: 4/29/2007

Granting Prom Wishes

by Robyn Hoffman

White lights twinkle in the atrium of the CityPlex Towers in Tulsa, Okla., casting a faint glow on Tiffany Grant's pink satin formal as she glides across the dance floor with her date.

first appeared: 4/15/2007

Sharing His Harvest

by Leanna Skarnulis

Farmer Tony Madone, 53, can only imagine the smiles on peoples’ faces when they discover sweet corn, acorn squash, cabbage and other farm-fresh produce at food banks and soup kitchens in and around Salida, Colo. (pop. 5,728).

first appeared: 4/1/2007

Taking the Bible Behind Bars

by Karen Karvonen

The men who study the Bible with John Steeves aren't your average churchgoers. Dressed in orange prison garb, many await sentencing for burglary, trafficking in narcotics, rape or murder.

first appeared: 3/25/2007

Teaching with Dummies

by Karen Karvonen

Educator Dennis Daniels delivers some of his most inspiring lessons to children without ever seeming to open his mouth—as a ventriloquist.

first appeared: 3/18/2007

The Mighty Oaks

by Chris Neal

On a rainy morning in Nashville, Tenn., the Oak Ridge Boys’ idling tour bus is parked outside the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, where they’re scheduled to sing a little later.

first appeared: 3/18/2007

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