We all have our heroes and mine goes by the name of Dad | Tracey Smith

As it is coming up to Father’s Day, I thought this would be a great topic this week.

What makes a person a hero? A hero is selfless and a genuinely good person. Heroes do simple acts of kindness, courage and love, expressed by simple, ordinary actions.

Who is your hero? I know mine certainly isn’t some footballer or rapper earning millions, but I do have people who I admire that are famous. I wouldn’t put them on my “hero pedestal” though.

Heroes very rarely wants thanks or adoration for the work that they do. They quietly go about making this world a better place without recognition. Those that brag when they have helped someone, or a good cause, are often in it for the limelight.

I have to say my biggest hero is my dad. He has taught me to be the person I am today. He is kind, considerate, a true gentleman with a working mans' ethics. You have to work hard in life, and nothing comes for free. He has taught me to be silly, have a sense of humour and to laugh at myself.

My other heroes have to be the single mums and dads out there, bringing up children single handed, being mum AND dad is no mean feat, and I can speak from experience on that one. My love also goes out to foster and adoptive parents who give their love to children whom they take on as their own.

I also admire our local heroes. James Anderson being one of them who set up DEPHER CIC, offering the elderly and the disabled free plumbing services in our community and all that they did to help those that needed it the most during the pandemic.

The people that run our local food banks, who work tirelessly to fund raise and work hard to ensure our local families don’t go without are heroes. As well as all the volunteer workers that help in our community.

I admire comedian Jason Manford. At the start of the pandemic in 2020, when his work stopped he applied for a job at Tesco’s as a delivery driver. He was rejected by Tesco’s so Iceland took him on.

He donated his wages to two of his favourite charities. He then went on to ferry the elderly to their hospital and doctors appointments. I don’t remember seeing any other celebrities stepping up in a crisis.

I have just searched on google “Top 50 greatest Heroes” – it gave me James Bond in Dr No, Indiana Jones, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Rick Blaine in Casablanca.

Not quite the heroes I was thinking of! What happened to Mother Teresa, Ghandi and Joan of Arc?!

I think any act of kindness of selflessness makes you a hero. Where your action doesn’t need thinking about or filming so you can post it on social media. I am sure there are millions of heroes out there wearing their invisible superhero capes.