Daniel Hernández, Jr. rejects the label of "hero" and says that is a title reserved for those who perform public service. Yet because of this young man's quick thinking and selfless action during a ghastly episode in our nation's history, at least one woman is still alive - and quite possibly several others.
I've talked about how important it is for our children to see role models from our cultura. How doing so helps to combat all the negative stereotypes of Latinos that are portrayed on TV and in the media. How our kids NEED to see people like themselves who are successful or who are worthy of admiration and respect.
I've already mentioned a few Latinos here, but the truth is that there are many Latino role models who are not celebrities. Regular people with courageous hearts are everywhere. These are indeed the stories that our children need to hear. And I would like to develop this series further on Mommy Maestra.
University of Arizona student, Daniel Hernández Jr., had only been an unpaid intern for Gifford five days when the shooting took place, and when shots rang out, he ran towards the congresswoman. When he saw she was injured, he immediately put into practice the limited nursing training he received in high school.
According to an MSNBC article, "Hernandez, who was trained in first aid and triage at a hospital as part of his nursing assistant class, said he checked the pulse and breathing of two or three victims before determining that the congresswoman was the most seriously wounded of the victims who were still alive."
For any of you who missed it, below is the video of the speech that Hernandez gave at the memorial event in Arizona.
Bien hecho, Daniel.
