1 of 36

Write now Article Tools

Page 2 of 3

man. I myself had recently divorced a very abusive man and was taking care of two very young children all on my own. Tom was the most gentle, loving man I had ever met. He was an incredible father to his boys and immediately bonded with my young daughter and son as well. Eventually we moved in together and he became the father to my children that they had never really had. He loved them like his own, and they too loved him. Tom became their superhero. In their eyes, he was the strongest, bravest, smartest man they had ever known.

Eventually, Tom and I got married and went on to have two more beautiful children. By this time, his sons were grown up and starting to go out on their own. I was amazed at how incredible he was with our first baby, a daughter. He would get up in the middle of the night to take care of her so I could rest. He even changed diapers, which was something my ex-husband would never consider. But, it wasn't until we had our son, in July of 2005, that I realized just how strong he was. A few days after the birth of our son, I developed multiple organ failure and nearly died. My heart, lungs, liver, and kidneys all went into failure. I was put into the ICU for a few weeks to recover. Tom had to take care of all four children, including our newborn son, all by himself. Not only did he take care of the children, he took care of me. He was my rock. He came to see me every day to make sure I was okay and getting stronger. He brought me pictures of the baby each day because he knew how badly I missed seeing the child I had only just given birth to and the hospital would not allow him to bring the baby into the ICU. He made sure the older children maintained as much of a normal routine as possible and eased their fears about my illness. Tom also kept up on my doctors to make sure they were providing me with the best care possible. He did all this without showing any sign of fear or stress. Not having to worry about my family helped me to focus on getting better so that I could go home.

I eventually got better, and a couple of months after our son was born, Tom showed his bravery and compassion once again. Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast with a vengeance. The area was destroyed and the people who lived there needed help. Tom volunteered to go to New Orleans to help with the rescue and cleanup efforts. He assisted the National Guard in going house to house to check for survivors. He witnessed what was equivalent to, and sometimes worse than, many

• << previous page
• 1
• 2
• 3
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about Recognizing real-life heroes?
We want to hear your view. Write now!