This deck celebrates 20 people who put their lives on the line for others. They may not get a gold statue or a walk on a red carpet, but they're stars all the same. Forget the Oscars.

2. Film professionals are honored with Oscars (aka Academy Awards of
Merit), Golden Globe Awards, MTV Movie Awards, BAFTA Awards,
NY/SD/SF/Austin Film Critics’ Awards, Screen Actor’s Guild Awards,
Writer’s Guild Awards, etcetera ad nauseum….
Over one hundred different organizations give awards to films, and to
those that create them.
The most self-congratulatory industry there is,
except for politics.
But what about the real heroes?
First: HOW MANY AWARDS ARE
ENOUGH?!

3. In no particular order: HERE ARE 20 HEROES.
(No statuettes, but a ton of gratitude.)
SELECTION CRITERIA: raw courage, compassion, selflessness.

4. In the Everyday Hero category:

5. Delroy Simmonds
On his way to a job interview in June 2012, he risked his life to lift
a baby off of train tracks after a gust of wind knocked the baby’s
stroller over the subway platform’s edge. He missed his
interview.
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Society/2012/0416/Everyday-heroes-Nine-tales-of-American-
heroes/Subway-stroller-rescue-and-a-new-job
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/brooklyn/subway_hero_reunited_with_tot_jnl9K0FrRDRHY5B
JMQMGLO?utm_medium=rss&utm_content=%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20Br
ooklyn

6. James and J.D. Bennett
Father and son duo raced into a burning van to save two children
after a collision in January 2012.
http://sanger.kmph.com/news/news/74480-babies-pulled-burning-car-reunite-rescuers

7. Kristyn Dominy
In March 2012, this woman rescued a driver and her child after
the Jeep they were in crashed among trees and erupted in
flames The victim of the crash had earlier “flipped off” Dominy
as she was driving by.
http://tampa.cbslocal.com/2012/03/09/woman-rescues-driver-who-flipped-her-off/

8. Jeremy Wuitschick
April 2012: This 13-year old boy steered a schoolbus full of kids
to the side of the road after the driver had a seizure and fell
unconscious. Jeremy stopped the engine, then began CPR on
the driver.
http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2017945317_schoolbushero10.html (with dashcam video
of incident)

9. Jeff Blackburn
While on his sanitation route, in May 2012, he observed a stroller
getting away from a mother, and about to roll into an intersection.
He blocked traffic and ran to grab the stroller before the baby
could be hit by an oncoming truck.
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Garbage-truck-driver-hailed-as-hero-for-saving-baby-in-
runaway-stroller-156400715.html (with dashcam video of incident)

10. Robert Sotelo
He rescued an elderly woman from a burning home in San Jose
in July 2012.
http://www.ktvu.com/news/news/man-saves-85-year-old-woman-burning-san-jose-home/nPmCk/

11. Linda Rios
In October 2012, this woman fought off dogs to rescue an elderly
woman from being mauled.
http://www.news-journal.com/news/local/rusk-county-woman-rescues-elderly-neighbor-from-dog-
mauling/article_1fcbd289-8a16-57db-a5b6-8ff522fa01a9.html

12. Carter Graves
In November 2012, a kayaker who had lost his boat and was in
distress in a riptide and heavy surf was rescued by Carter.
http://www.coronadonewsca.com/news/article_be0b0264-3b1f-11e2-b951-0019bb2963f4.html

13. Laura Majkut
She pulled an unconscious teenager out of the smoke-filled
apartment above hers in November 2012.
http://www.boston.com/metrodesk/2012/11/09/natick-woman-rescues-teenager-burning-
apartment/85r4LpHA3LkztQ4ZoHLf5J/story.html

14. Richard Opthof
In December, this ER Nurse grabbed a ladder, climbed up on his
neighbor’s burning home, and rescued a woman dangling from a
window (trying to escape the smoke).
http://www.northjersey.com/news/185245752_Neighbor_rescues_an_elderly_woman_from_burnin
g_Bogota_home.html

15. Shontal Gaymon
This 29-year-old mom raced into a burning building and suffered
second- and third-degree burns to save a one-year-old child.
http://www.fox23news.com/news/local/story/A-Heros-Story-Troy-woman-runs-into-
burning/rq_ufcrAhkuA5a142i2tyA.cspx

16. Four in the “Young Kid Saves Another from
Drowning” category….

17. Sagar Kashyap (video)
He was on the shore of the Agra Canal in Jaitpur area of southeast
Delhi when he heard four boys shout for help. He was able to save
3 boys in 15 minutes, while one sank below the water.
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/teenaged-braveheart-saves-3-from-
drowning/1/208712.html
And then he saved lives again, one month later!:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/Saviour-boy-does-it-
again-rescues-3-drowning-kids/Article1-913762.aspx

18. Jermyasha Scales
11 years old, she was the first at the scene to realize something
was wrong, and pulled the 12-year old drowning victim to the
surface, up from the pool’s bottom. Only then did adults realize
something was wrong and come to help.
http://www.wkrn.com/story/18780229/child-pulled-from-pool

19. Cooper Davis
In July 2012, this 8-year old dove to the bottom of a pool to pull
up a child who had drowned and sunk to the bottom.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/year-hero-pulls-boy-bottom-pool/story?id=16873817
(includes video)

20. Daniel Hobbson
This 17-year-old swam 2000 feet from shore to reach an overturned
boat, then used a child's plastic blow-up swim ring to rescue a 43-
year-old man who had fallen into the freezing cold lake. It took nearly
40 minutes for Daniel, who was suffering hypothermia, to tow him to
shore.
http://www.news.com.au/national-old/teenager-rescues-man-after-boat-overturns-on-lake-lonsdale/story-
e6frfkvr-1226240137495

21. Heroes that pour out their lives:

22. Lou Xiaoying
This woman, now 88, has rescued
and raised 30 babies that were
abandoned in the streets of Jinhua.
'She is shaming to governments,
schools and people who stand by
and do nothing. She has no money
or power but she saved children
from death or worse.'
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2181017/Lou-
Xiaoying-Story-Chinese-woman-saved-30-abandoned-
babies-dumped-street-trash.html

23. Scott Neeson
Former president of 20th Century Fox Intl., Neeson gave up his
Hollywood life to run a Cambodian charity that has helped house,
educate, and provide care for 1500 children in desperate situations.
Before moving, he had visited Phnom Penh. One day as he was
trying to help 3 sick children (at a dump), an agent In California called
because his star client was having a meltdown. The actor’s private jet
wasn't properly stocked with his favorite stuff. “The actor said, 'My life
wasn't meant to be this difficult.' The kids I was with were very sick…
here's this [millionaire] yelling. If I needed a sign, that was it.” ~
Neeson
http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20671252,00.html

24. Malala Yousafzai
This Pakistani teen has fought for girls' rights to education –
risking her own life to do so. At 15, she was shot in the head in a
Taliban assassination attempt. She had criticized the Taliban for
their repression and demolition of the school in her valley.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gordon-brown/no-bullets-bombs-threats_b_2101346.html?

25. Susana Trimarco
This amazing woman has dedicated
her life to rescuing women abducted
into sex-slavery. Hundreds of women
have been freed, and subsequently
helped testify against and convict the
traffickers and corrupt police that were
involved.
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Making-a-
difference/Change-Agent/2012/1211/Mom-in-Argentina-
rescues-hundreds-of-sex-slaves

26. Dr. Gary Parker
In 2012, Dr. Parker performed hundreds of surgeries to improve the
lives of patients in West Africa. None of them paid him a dime.
He’s been doing as many operations each year as a volunteer, on
board Mercy Ships… for 26 years.
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50141237n

27. Brian Crouch
Seattle, WA
http://twitter.com/briancrouch
https://plus.google.com/104832010527349100318/
All images used with attribution to original source and/or in accordance with US Copyright Law, fair use,
section 107: http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html
Director, Social Media at SDL. SDL is not responsible for this content.

28. "Awards are meaningless for actors, unless they all play the same role."
—Humphrey Bogart, 1943
What role will you play?