by Gabriella Kraft

Everybody has a modern-day hero. Whether it be a family member, a famous artist, or a poet; they have one. For Spanish teacher Suzanne Padron, her modern-day hero is her daughter. 

“My daughter is the hardest-working person I know. She works harder every day to grow her career, of which she has two, and never fails to stand up for what’s right,” said Padron.

She first realized her daughter was her hero in 2020, during the Black Lives Matter protests, because despite her not being in great physical condition, she kept going back to continue protesting.

“She continued to protest every day, even after she broke her foot, even after being hit with tear gas, even after being shot at with rubber bullets; she went back the next day to continue protesting,” Padron said.

Sophomore Kahlani Hunts modern-day hero, was very present in most of her childhood movies, Lin-Manuel Miranda.

“He is in a lot of my childhood movies, and his songs just bring me a lot of nostalgic memories. I first discovered him when I was nine years old in Moana, that’s when I first realized he was my hero,” said Hunt.

“His songs bring feelings of joy because his songs remind me of happy childhood memories, and sadness because the lyrics in his songs are so heartfelt they bring me to tears,” said Hunt.

Biomedical teacher Charles ‘Brian’ Patton’s modern-day hero is a bit more personal — it’s his father.

“He is my hero because he is everything I would want to be as a man, father, teacher, and person. He’s been my hero for as long as I can remember,” said Patton

For sophomore Rachel Ledbetter, her modern-day hero is the very famous author Kristin Hannah.

“She’s my hero because her books touch on important topics people should be more informed about. I was first introduced to her when I read her book ‘The Great Alone’ last year. I also read her book ‘“’The Nightingale’, which brought me to tears,” said Ledbetter

Chemistry teacher James Huffman’s modern-day hero is the ex-football player Dan Marino, whom he grew up watching.

“He is my hero because I loved the Miami Dolphins growing up, and I always wanted to be a quarterback even though I was a running back. I remember first watching him when I was 5 or 6 ‘til the time I turned 18,” said Huffman. 

 Sophomore Alia Griffith’s modern-day hero is a little closer to home, as it is her mother.

“She teaches me to be the person I aspire to be in the future. She’s who I looked up to my whole life. And that hasn’t changed as I’ve gotten older,” said Griffith.

For English teacher David Kummer, his modern-day hero is Greta Thunberg.

“For her to speak out about what she cares about, and not just environmental stuff, but also the genocide in Palestine, even when she put herself in danger, made me admire her,” said Kummer.

He first heard about her when he was in college and she was in high school because it was at that point that she started getting popular for how outspoken she was.

“I heard about her through social media, specifically about her environmentalism, and I thought it was cool that a high schooler was so outspoken about that,” said Kummer.

Everybody’s modern-day hero is different. They all carry various emotions, different people, and different goals. Our hero reflects on who we are as a person.