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Heroes Come In Many Shapes and Sizes

by John J. Fanning

The past couple of months have been filled with stories about the crew of U.S. Airways, flight 1429 and the heroic effort put forth by the captain of that aircraft, Chesley B. “Sully” Sullenberger.

I think America was overdue for some good news like this and I think that Captain Sullenberger epitomizes that hardworking, no-nonsense, get‘er done attitude that embodies the American spirit. I believe that’s why America embraced the good Captain and the rest of the crew of that ill-fated airplane and I believe that is why we so readily attached the word “hero” to his name.

To be sure, some people out there questioned the idea of assigning the term “hero” to someone that was simply doing what they were expected to do. I can understand such thoughts. Technically, heroism is bestowed upon a person who performs an extraordinary feat that – and this part is important – if he or she had not done, no one could ever have found fault in their failure to act.

Captain Sullenberger, like all commercial pilots, was trained how to crash-land an airplane into water and obviously, he performed exactly as he was expected to perform. This is why some have questioned the wisdom of still assigning the term “hero” to his actions.

If we term Sullenberger’s actions to be heroic, then are we suggesting that the “anticipated” action of cockpit crews in similar situations is something less?

Much to his credit, Captain Sullenberger never suggested that he was a hero or that his actions were heroic. But of course, that is something that we have come to expect from our heroes. As best that I could find, it was the “first responders” at the scene who initially declared the Captain a hero. Then, through saturation broadcasting, the media officially assigned him that status.

I think some Americans feel that Sullenberger merits the status of hero because he managed to overcome what we have come to perceive as the inevitable fate of those who go against the whims and foibles of modern technology. It seems that every day we hear about some new catastrophe or mishap occurring because technology failed or some group used our own technology against us. It is so very good and so very rare for us to see a satisfactory outcome from such moments, that we instinctively assign words like “miracle” and “heroic” to the events and the participants.

Personally, I think Captain Sullenberger is a hero and I feel good about the fact that America’s attention has been drawn to an average guy who accomplished an extraordinary feat. I’ve known for a long time that this country of ours is filled with heroes who never seem to get the recognition they deserve. You can see them every day if you just take the time to look. Like that teacher who stays late at school to help a kid who’s struggling to learn or that father who is holding down two jobs so that his kid may never have to hold down two jobs. I think they’re heroes.

I think that the single mom who manages to put food on the table and still get her kid to band practice is a hero. Just like the man or woman who quietly drops some folded bills into the Salvation Army’s red kettle is heroic.

I don’t believe that any nation or society can be deemed “great” without having a great many heroes at its core. Perhaps it’s because America has been endowed with so many heroic people, that we tend to overlook their acts and take them for granted.

Perhaps…

All my life, the press has referred to sports figures as being heroic.

I could never understand that. I have never considered any professional athlete to be heroic. I’ve considered some to be fortunate, talented and admirable - but never heroic. I guess I have been lucky in that way because I never have been forced to suffer the disappointment that comes whenever news breaks about something an athlete has done wrong.

I think if we ever screwed up the way we assign the term “hero”, it may have been with professional athletes. All athletes play a game and are expected to play that game by the rules. If someone who does that is considered a hero, it can only be because so few actually do. And that, of course, is a sad thing to consider.

I hope that somehow we can come to admire people like Captain “Sully” more and sports figures less. I hope that writers write more about these everyday heroes and more movies are made and songs are sung that extol the heroism and virtue of the men and women truly worthy of our admiration and attention.

I don’t think it likely that it will happen, but I’m still going to wish for it.

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