by Marissa Meleske

Created on: January 22, 2011

A hero. That is a big title. Most people site someone famous when asked who their hero is, but what does it really mean to be a hero? I'm not talking about the sandwich either. A hero, has a few definitions...

1. a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities.
2. a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal: He was a local hero when he saved the drowning child.

3. the principal male character in a story, play, film, etc.
4. Classical Mythology. a. a being of godlike prowess and beneficence who often came to be honored as a divinity. b. (in the Homeric period) a warrior-chieftain of special strength, courage, or ability. c. (in later antiquity) an immortal being; demigod.

What is YOUR definition of a hero? Who is YOUR hero? While I concur with the above definitions of a "hero, my personal definition of a hero, is anyone, well known or not, who has made an impact in your life or inspired you in some way. From a family member, to a friend, to your favorite star.  

My favorite type of hero, is one that lives up to the title without even attempting to, a hero by accident. Someone who is a hero, simply by being themselves. I met one of my personal heroes through the mutual love of a rock star. It was the summer of 2006. Like much of America, I was glued to my television that summer, watching American Idol. Early on, I became so invested in rocker Chris Daughtry, who later went on to become the front man of the band Daughtry, that I signed up to the message boards at the American Idol official site. I met and connected with many fans who shared my love of the rocker. I am usually a very curious, even nosey person, who would read all of the threads on the forums' front page. For weeks, I saw a thread that stayed toward the top or middle of the front page continuously. It was the "Support Boey Thread". I had no idea what it meant, and was initially only interested in going on the web site to read up on, and talk about Chris.

One day, the site was pretty slow, so I decided to venture on into that thread. What I saw floored me. The thread ended up being about a then 6 year old little girl named Jenessa Byers, known best by her nickname "Boey". In January of 2006, Boey was diagnosed with the childhood bone cancer known as Rhabdomyosarcoma. For a little girl, it was special for her to connect with

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