THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 23, 1996 TAG: 9608230402
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E14 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LUIS PAREDES, HIGH SCHOOL CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: 64 lines
FOR YOUNGSTERS, a hero is someone with superhuman strength and the ability to wear bright red tights in public without being laughed at. As children grow into teen-agers, the people they look up tend not to wear costumes or fight crime. Their varied heroes look just like the rest of us.
``A hero is someone who has good morals, integrity, compassion and trustworthiness,'' said Yariel Garcia, a 1996 graduate of Princess Anne High School.
This week, teen-agers interviewed for Teenspeak said that they look to a wide variety of individuals from the past, present and future as role models. Take, for example, Jason Sutton, who looks up to Ernest Hemingway as a role model for his writing and way of life.
``I also look up to people like (Cuban revolutionary) Che Guevara,'' said Jason, a 1996 graduate of Cox High School. ``People like him would die for what they believed in.''
Whitney Waller, a rising sophomore at Ocean Lakes High School, looks up to John Linnell and John Foansburgh, members of the musical group They Might be Giants.
``I look up to them because they are doing so well, but are being different with themselves and their music,'' said Whitney, who also attends the Governors School for the Arts.
But most of the teen-agers interviewed viewed family members and teachers as their true heroes.
``My father is my hero,'' said Dawn Marrotte, a 1996 graduate of First Colonial High School. ``He's always been No. 1 to me because he's such a hard worker.''
Dawn's father, Louis Adelard Marrotte IV, said, ``Let's face it, you always want to be someone's hero and when you get to be your children's, that's the ultimate compliment.''
Siblings, especially older ones, are also heroes.
``My sister is my hero. Because she had to do so many things for me, like taking care of me and ever since I could remember, I have always wanted to be like her,'' said Crystal Fermi, a rising freshman at Salem High.
Teachers are also big influences in teen-agers' lives.
``Teachers are the most moving people to me, well, the ones who care about the student growing, and most of all, learning,'' said Julie Baber, a rising junior at Cox.
``My hero is my fifth-grade music teacher, Mrs. Forbes,'' said Melane Steward, a rising senior at Cox. ``She got me into music and I've been dedicated to it ever since.''
A curious thing about teen-age heroes and role models is this: adults tend to think that teen-agers only look up to sports figures or entertainment stars. Students said this is because most adults don't have much contact with teen-agers.
``Older human beings have always been a mystery to me,'' said Julie. ``A lot of adults think athletes and rock musicians are our role models and it's really not that way.''
``My parents think my heroes are rock stars, but it's really not like that,'' said Donald Bramlett, a rising senior at Cox High School. ``I look up to (photographers) Ansel Adams, Edward Weston and Dorothea Lange.''
Donald, an avid photographer and a student at the Governors School for the Arts, said, ``they were great artists,'' Donald said. ``They always took things two or three steps ahead of everyone.'' MEMO: Luis Paredes is a 1996 graduate of Cox High School who will attend
college in Rota, Spain. by CNB