Everyday ordinary people do extraordinary things. It doesn’t always happen in your backyard, but this time both OWN heroes shined in some of my own stomping grounds….Orange County, California and Sarasota, Florida.

Eddie Peoples is a father of four boys and a Sergeant in the US Army – he knows all about chaos and control. Fortunately for two of his sons and the community, he also knows how to be a hero. Eddie dragged along two of his young boys when he ran a quick errand to the bank in Sarasota, Florida. He sat his boys down in a couple of chairs and told them to stay. Unfortunately, he needed to worry about more than just his kids staying put. After getting them settled, a man walked into the bank with a gun – instructing everyone to get down and not to move. Eddie’s thoughts went straight to his children. Despite the instructions, he whispered for his kids to get under the chairs and he positioned two chairs to block the children from the robber’s view. Turning with his eyes on the gunman, he placed his hands on his hips to appear non-aggressive. As the robber goes to exit the bank, he pointed the gun towards Eddie’s 6-year old son and said “Don’t anyone try anything or else the little kiddies gets it”. Instinctively Eddie moved a little closer to the robber who then said “Hey you, big black guy, don’t try anything”. After exiting the bank, Eddie felt as if it was his duty to step up and protect his community. After telling his kids to stay put, he headed after the guy. The robber headed across the street and Eddie jumped into his minivan….yes MINIVAN. No longer do they look so wimpy. Eddie proceeded across the street to pin the robber in his car with his own. With his gun drawn on Eddie as he stood in front of his car, Eddie thought the worst was about to happen, but it didn’t! He knew he needed to act fast or he was dead. He jumped from the car and knew he needed to engage in hand-to-hand combat. Close enough to engage he was able to grab the weapon to hopefully deflect the bullets and realized it was too light to be real. He held him to the ground until the police arrived. Amazing and incredibly intense. PLEASE do not attempt this at home people. I am thinking his wife is still yelling at him…and praising him in the same breath.

The next story was one that I remember reading about and watching on the news. Two women had gone out mountain biking in Orange County’s Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park. As friends Anne Hjelle and Debi Nicholls headed out for a ride in the middle of the day, they had no idea that they would be fighting for their lives. After reaching a steep climb they came to a stop at the top and watched as two guys headed off ahead of them down the hill. Keeping their competitive juices flowing Anne decided to try to catch them on the road down. Soon they came across a man who said he found an abandoned bike on the trail. Thinking it was the two guys she had seen earlier she thought the guy was just joking around and the continued on. Within a minute or two, Anne hit a plateau and she saw something furry out of the corner of her eye. She thought it was deer and that they were about to collide. Unfortunately it was far worse than that. She was being attacked by a mountain lion. As Debi arrived to the scene, she picked up her bike and threw it at him. He didn’t flinch. She grabbed Anne’s leg and pulled with all of her might. Debi was in a tug-o-war with a mountain lion. As he tore more into Anne, Debi continued to fight to hold onto her friend. As the mountain lion pinned himself against a tree, Debi knew it was bad. Then they heard men on the trail who called down to help. They called in the attack and then Debi told them to throw rocks at the mountain lion. Eventually one of the rocks hit the mountain lion and it took off. Desperate to get her out of there, the guys came down and helped to get her up. Soon after the EMTs arrived as the mountain lion remained close by. Anne was then airlifted out. Shortly after the EMTs noticed a second victim which was a male…the abandoned bike must have been his. The victim, Mark Reynolds, didn’t make it. Anne had extensive damage to her neck and face and required multiple surgeries. However she was alive thanks to her friend Debi….someone who was able to focus and find the courage to fight off a mountain lion. Although the other bikers weren’t mentioned by name, they too are heroes in my book. Without them, both Debi and Anne might have lost the struggle.

I was amazed this episode at the selfless courage each hero showed in both stories. It reminds me that as I walk down the street, it is quite possible there are heroes all around me.