Hyrum Watkins Kershaw: My Hero

Improved Essays
My Hero
Thursday, October 8th 2015, started out like any other day. I woke up, went to class, talked with my friends, and so on. It wasn’t until I was on my way to lunch my cousin came up to me and informed me that my great grandpa, Hyrum Watkins Kershaw, had died earlier that day. I didn’t cry upon hearing that he was dead. I simply wasn’t sad. I am not saying that I didn’t love my grandpa, but he was of the age where he was no longer happy. He weighed only 67 pounds and couldn’t really move much without help anymore. He had lived a long life having died at 93 years old. He was also lonely having his loving wife die 18 years earlier. It was simply time for him to go. However it wasn’t until he died that I was able to learn his life story and realized he is my hero.
Hyrum Watkins Kershaw was born on January 4th, 1922 to 16 year old Annie Melissa Kershaw. In his personal history, he states, “Father, unnamed. Without question I was unwanted.” When he was 3 years old his mother married Carl Conrad Anderson. His stepfather was a mean and cruel man. My
…show more content…
He would stand up to his height of 4’11 and give me a hug. He was proud of his military service. He loved to tell stories about his missions in the war. I wish that I had spent more time learning of these stories and the stories about his life, instead I would only give him a hug and go play with my cousins. I now look back and wish I had taken the time to learn more about his life while he was still hear, and to have been able to here these stories from his own mouth, for these stories tell of my grandpa’s amazing character, the character that has made him my hero. They speak of the great courage he had to run away from home at only the age of nine, and the courage he had to sign up to fight in the war. They tell of his joy for life even though life wasn’t easy for him. They also teach me of his humility, kindness, and love for

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Andrew Donaldson

    • 745 Words
    • 3 Pages

    December 17, 1949 in Monticello, Arkansas my grandpa Darrell Andrew Donaldson was born to Oren and Lucille Donaldson. He was the middle child of three children. He, his parents, and his grandparents all lived under the same roof. This continued until his grandmother’s death in 1955.…

    • 745 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Howard L. DuBose was born on June 25, 1940, in Meridian, Mississippi. His parents are James Amos DuBose and Eula Inez Fairchild DuBose. His father worked for the Illinois Central Railroad, and his mother was a stay at home housewife. He has eight siblings: seven brothers, and one sister. Three of his brothers have passed away.…

    • 944 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Joshua Hankerson

    • 720 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Joshua Hankerson was the son of the late Janice and Jonathan Hankerson. Joshua was born on October 31, 1966 in Dallas, Texas. Jonathan was a preacher and went by very strict religious beliefs. Jonathan met Janice in 1960 and a year later they married. Janice was a small school house teacher.…

    • 720 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The men were so brave to go into battle and risking their lives. Many of them knew that they would not likely live once seeing and hearing the horrific acts of war. Soldiers were not receiving the deaths they deserved the poem talks about and it shows the unselfish act taken by the men to fight for their country. The “Ex-Basketball Player” and “Anthem for Doomed Youth” show being a hero can happen in two ways, but also the praise you get to be very different. Flick was a hero for his high school being the star, he is applauded for doing great things.…

    • 1491 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    He encouraged many soldiers to write, as well as himself. He wrote many letters for the soldiers- including love letters, very tender ones- (McElroy, 1999). His poem Come Up from the Fields Father, reveals his take on how the loved ones would feel as they opened up these letters, “ Open the envelope quickly, O this is not our son’s handwriting, yet his name is sign’d, O a strange hand writes for our dear son, O stricken mother’s soul!…

    • 800 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    One week he was having open heart, the next bilateral hernia. It was life threatening to him. My personal hero, Colton Gilliam, my brother inspires me to stay strong. So that is how he is my hero and helps me stay strong. Who is your hero?…

    • 362 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Great Essays

    Like I said before, he gave the art of reading to the world, and, most of all, he didn’t give up. That right there makes me want to get up and do something, and if it fails, I’ll just try again! He inspires me to be my best. To work harder for things. He might not have been the best person, but he is so inspirational.…

    • 854 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    I had never been so far away from my family before, and I instantly missed my grandpa. I talked to him every other night about the Dodgers and Lakers. He gave me advice about school and even girls. One morning, I received a call from my dad, and I immediately knew something was up. He told me that my grandpa was diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer.…

    • 531 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    I remember the times when I would sit with my father and ask how his life was before he came to the East Coast. And I could still remember how the story went every time he told me. On June 14, 1961, my father was born. Born and raised in the city of San Martín Sacatepéquez, Guatemala with 4 other siblings, and he was the second oldest child of the bunch. His name was Carlos Enrique Ortega-Lara.…

    • 985 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    It’s been four years since I’ve seen him; the war has taken so many lives it’s foolish to think that he’s still alive, but the chance that he is still out there, fighting in Europe, I have to cling to that hope, I have to believe that he is coming back. But I just can’t. It was 1940 when Jim left to go to Europe to fight on the front, I remember the day before he left like it was yesterday. The docks were the last place I was able to see him before he got onto that boat to leave to Europe. Our last moment of intimacy the night before left my heart in shatters as I saw his face slowly slip into the oblivion of which I could not see.…

    • 767 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Washington D.C. is made up of many historical landmarks. Each landmark has its own meaning and can teach future generations on how the United States of America got to where we are today. Although all seventy-four historical landmarks sound interesting and educational, there's only one I would love to visit. The Vietnam War Memorial will always hold a special place in my heart because my grandpa was one of the fortunate soldiers who made it home after the war. Throughout my life, my grandfather has always told me stories about his time in the war, and about the people he has lost.…

    • 583 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    As his coffin was lowered into the ground my mum grabbed my arm and wouldn 't let go. I knew this was the final goodbye. This was the last time I would ever see him. My granddad that would drive me to school, the one that would fall asleep in the cinema, and the one that would always complain about the amount of toys we had. Even though he was gone he will be in our hearts forever.…

    • 1122 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In Remembrance of Granny Zoo (An Elegy of Someone I Love) In life, we are often tremendously influenced by specific people. And as we continually live our lives, there is always the possibility that we will lose someone that we love. But when we lose that person, it is often easy to realize how important it is to look back and realize all that the accomplished and how big of an impact they were.…

    • 844 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    I’m listening to my dad’s old CD’s from the 50-70’s. Nobody can hear it but me. The night is silence. The star is shining. The world is listening.…

    • 1585 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Cole's Character Analysis

    • 1035 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The last two years have been filled with some of the best and worst moments of my life. I have dealt with some very drastic changes, including death and injury. Throughout all of the chaos there has been one constant, one person who has always been by my side. Cole is my best friend and has had one of the biggest influences in my attitude, perspective and choices. May 6, 2014 was a day that my world got flipped upside down.…

    • 1035 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays