In Search Of Heroes Members Program

Willie Crawford: Schoolteachers, there are so many schoolteachers who are in really, really dangerous situations who are getting paid next to nothing. They’re not getting any respect and yet they’re shaping the next generation of our country. So I think schoolteachers.

I want to say soldiers because I was a soldier, and because when America transitioned force what that meant was, the rich could then say well I don’t want my son to go into military so I’m going to hire you instead to go.
Risk your life to defend me and my rights and my privileges and someone who you know once you raise your hand and say I’ll follow orders and do whatever I’m told to do, you’ve basically volunteered to sacrifice your life if necessary.

While everybody says a soldier is a hero probably, most don’t realize that they have basically given up all their rights. I spent 20 years where if you told me to charge up that hill with a rock it was my job to do that, and even if I saw the guy in front of me getting shot it’s my job to do that.

So when a country has an all-volunteer force, you’re finding people to step out and volunteer to risk their lives and their health to defend your way of life and to me a soldier is a big hero.

Nobody, again nobody just wants to run out and get shot but a soldier is defending your freedom, your ability your right to think whatever you want to, but its often somebody who, who has less choices as to other things to do. So because they don’t have a lot of other options they choose to go into the military and they’re off in Eroc or in whatever country. They are in the demilitarized known in Korea.

The war ended in Korea in the 50’s, the countries have been at war over almost 60 years, and there are soldiers on the front lines everyday right now.

So to me a soldier, a young man who at 18 gets married and marries his high school sweetheart, and then goes off and leaves her maybe pregnant, and gets a picture of his child being born while he is off in some other country, to me that’s a tremendous, tremendous sacrifice, and anybody listening or reading this interview, I beg you to show your support for somebody like that.

You don’t have to agree with the politics of your country, but what you have to realize is that the soldiers don’t have to agree with the politics of the country, they do what they are told to do.

I have often said, the old men set around and make decisions, and send the young men out to get shot. Those young men have no choice. They volunteered to do a job, and then they have to trust their leaders to make good decisions, and decisions aren’t always good, but they do what they’re told to do, so to me a soldier is a tremendous, tremendous hero.

Fireman, policeman, very tough jobs, they do things to protect us and we often don’t appreciate them. We all should appreciate fireman. Policeman… you know I’m driving down the freeway and my wife sees a police car and she brakes or whatever. I don’t brake, I think great, there is a man doing his job he’s protecting me and he’s taking tremendous risk, and he’s getting paid next to nothing. I know in one part of Florida 28 to $35,000.00 a year is salary for policeman. I’ve done that in a month. So yet it’s his job to protect me, my home, my property. Protect me against drunk drivers, drug dealers, people just driving wild on the freeway, so policeman are my heroes.

Character is a by-product; it is produced in the great manufacture of daily duty.
- Woodrow T. Wilson

Jeff Dedrick: People have to give up on some of these sports figures or these TV celebrities. People care so much about what celebrity is cheating on whom and who is having whose baby. Man who cares? They sang a couple of songs and they became stars because of that. Other than that who cares? They might still be just evil nasty people.

It’s the people that you see that are making the difference. The teacher that sits there and they get in school early and then afterwards they are a coach. They don’t make that much money being a coach as far as I remember in high school, but they are out there teaching kids great lessons that they are going to have for the rest of their life. Some of them eventually make money, but they are definitely not paid what they are worth.

It’s amazing, and the hassles that they go through. There is almost no respect for them. I remember when I was a kid unfortunately in middle school and you know, looking back at it people were pretty mean to those middle school teachers. I am assuming it’s the same now.