Page 8 - 60 American Heroes Every Kid Should Meet

Introduction

ow quickly can you name 60 American heroes? They can be young
Hor old, from the past or present, living or dead, and any gender, but they all
must have made an exceptional positive contribution to our world.
How’d you do? Were you able to come up with 60 names? Who’s on your list?
Chances are, a few names popped right up: George Washington, Abraham Lincoln,
Martin Luther King Jr. Then maybe you mentioned people you are studying in
school, such as Thomas Jefferson, Eleanor Roosevelt, or Harriet Tubman. After that,
perhaps you listed a few important people in the news—Jimmy Carter, Dr. Anthony
Fauci, even Oprah Winfrey. But you still didn’t have 60 names, so you moved on to
sports stars, rock singers, and other celebrities who may or may not deserve to be
called heroes. Maybe you even filled out your list with imaginary heroes, such as
your favorite TV or movie characters.
Coming up with a list of 60 wasn’t easy, was it?
We didn’t think so either, and that’s why we wrote this book. Every kid needs
great people to admire and imitate, but how can you look up to them if you don’t
know who they are?
Among our heroes are architects and aviators, activists and scientists,
entrepreneurs and advocates. They are teachers, musicians, inventors, and athletes.
Some are well known. Others deserve to be. Some of our heroes lived long ago.
Others continue to enrich our world today. Our heroes share admirable qualities:
exceptional talent, fierce determination, and indomitable spirit. They are courageous
and confident and possess an unwavering commitment to being the best they can be.
Can only an American be a hero? Of course not. But America is like no other place
in the world. Here, heroes can be rich or poor, young or old, and of any race, religion,
or national origin under the sun. The opportunities open to us are almost endless.
We’re free to follow any dream that enters our heads, and we have every right to
expect fair treatment from others as we do so. It’s as simple as that.
Our goal is to provide you with a launching pad to discover new heroes. Then you
can have fun learning more as you decide which heroes interest you the most.
So what do these 60 American heroes have to do with you? Everything. They
might be what you want to be when you grow up. Although their shoes may seem
impossible to fill, you’ll find that many of our heroes were a lot like you when they
were young. They had families, homes, classmates, part-time jobs. Many had doubts
about their own abilities to make a difference in this world.

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