Thoughts From Dr. Joe:Unsung Heroes

A few weeks ago I was hanging out at the college saving souls and minding my own beeswax. All of a sudden I heard a ringing in my ear. “Hmm” I thought, “What could that be”? Since there were no 81 mm mortars in the area, I answered my cell phone.

“Hi Kaitzer … you want me to do what? Fill in for you at the La Cañada PTA Founders Day Celebration?”

“Yes, would you please,” she answered. Since Kaitzer is the president of the LCE PTA she was scheduled to present the Continuing Service Awards. Unfortunately, that evening she was to present a paper at Claremont Graduate University. Ergo, I took one for the team.

Kaitzer gave me explicit directions: make sure your shirt’s not wrinkled and be sure to explain the overwhelming contributions of the awardees for the schools, children and teachers. Both were Herculean challenges, but I would do my best. I drove home to iron a shirt.

Symbolically, Founders Day commemorates the dedication to the purposes of the PTA defined by PTA founders more than a century ago. It’s a day to honor the original founders and past and present PTA leaders. The Founders Day celebration was established in 1910 by Mrs. David O. Mears, a charter member of the National Congress of Mothers founded by Alice McLellan Birney and Phoebe Apperson Hearst in 1897. The observance has continued through the change of organization names in 1925 to the National Congress of Parents and Teachers, and the uniting in 1970 with the National Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers, founded in 1926 by Selena Sloan Butler, to become the National PTA.

I donned my freshly ironed shirt and headed to La Cañada High School for the event. Holy smoke … there must have been 60,000 people there; it was standing room only.

The theme of the evening was the Unsung Heroes whose efforts support the great enthusiasms and devotions of life. What struck me was that life doesn’t just happen. Instead, life is championed by the work of others who make the world turn. Susan Dodge and her committee orchestrated an impressive evening.

As I entered I saw the Children’s Choir of PCY preparing to sing the praises of their unsung heroes Jenny Hendler, Debbie Pierce, Mike Upton, Becky Lankey and Gayle Galper. I thought of Margaret Mead’s words, “Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

I have pondered the mythology of heroes, I’ve know many myself. Joseph Campbell’s, “The Hero’s Journey” analyzes the evolution of the hero from the earliest myths to Luke Skywalker. Heroes are a gift from the gods, without them we’re all plain people and would never realize how far we can go. The real heroes are not the likes of Prometheus, Odysseus, Achilles, or even Joan of Arc. The real heroes are the unsung heroes, the likes of Barbara Leach, Allison Dalbeck, Nancy Antonoplis, Camdon Eberhardt, and Kathy Hernandez from LCHS, 7/8.

I’ve learned that what makes the world turn are ordinary folks just like you! All life has its battlefields and as a result its heroes too. That’s the essence of an unsung hero, for true heroism is remarkably sober and very undramatic.

Let me get back to my story. It was time for me to take the mike; I took a deep breath and wished that I had not forgotten to iron the cuffs of my shirt. Since my only tools were words, I felt that intellectualizing the contributions of Judie Barrie, Jan Rappleye, Linda and Tim Cotter, Mayra del Valle and Joy Smith would not express the essence of their efforts. But the LCE choir rescued me and sang what I wanted to say.

Karen Mathison, LCHS PTA president, introduced Jim Harvey, Linda Matchie, Beth Waas, Michele Listo and Randy Strapazon as superheroes and presented each with a red cape. I thought Karen’s metaphor was perfect, because heroes take journeys, confront dragons and discover the treasure of their true selves.

Few of us are aware that Paul Revere earned his living as a silversmith. However, we remember him for his volunteer work. All activism is volunteering, it’s done above and beyond earning a living and usually deals with what people really care about. Such is the fate of Susanne Horne, Sue Price, Amy Bernhard, Susan Dodge and Robin George from Palm Crest.

The evening was over and frankly I was thrilled to have been a part of it, for it’s always sheer pageantry to be in the company of heroes. As I lingered, I thought of Admiral Halsey’s words, “There are no great men and women just great challenges that ordinary people rise up to meet.”

Dr. Joe is a practicing counselor specializing in helping middle and high school students transition to college. He is a professor of education at Glendale College and a former officer in the Marines. Reach him at captinjoey@yahoo.com or write him in care of the Valley Sun, P.O. Box 38, La Cañada, CA 91012.