Bethany Hamilton

Bethany after surfing (http://www.wetasschronicles.com/)

Bethany Hamilton was born to a family of surfers on February 8, 1990 on the island of Kauai, Hawaii. As a toddler, her parents taught her how to surf and by the age of seven years old she was able to surf without her parents' help. They also began putting the love and truth of Christ in her heart. By the age of eight her parents entered in the Rell Sun Menehune Contest on Oahu. She won both the long and short board divisions. By the age of thirteen, she was an accomplished surfer and well respected in the sport of surfing.

In the summer of 2003, Bethany placed second in the Women’s Division of the National Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) and her future looked promising. Her lifelong dream of being a professional surfer was ended on October 31, 2007. She was surfing on Kauai’s North Shore and a 14-foot long Tiger shark came up and bit off her arm. Her family rushed her to the Wilcox Memorial Hospital. After losing over 60% of her blood and undergoing several surgeries, they found no infection. Her family said she had a positive attitude through the whole deal.

Bethany in her hometown (http://www.loganmagazine.com)

Local, national, and foreign media traveled to the small Hawaiian island to report this shark attack on a teen. To their surprise, she was very positive about the situation. Her family was very protective and only let her do one personal interview. Her friends and family took care of the rest of the interviews. She was very nervous about her surfing career. About a month after the attack, she gave surfing a try with one arm. Now to this day, she is competing in competitions and doing very well.

To me, Bethany Hamilton is a hero because she cares more about other people then herself. Today, she writes books encouraging kids to believe in God and spreading the word of God. Also, when competing, people told her that she could paddle five minutes before the other competitors, but she said that she did not want special treatment. At a very young age, her parents thought it was important to have God always in your heart. She is also very brave and she was willing to try to surf with only one arm. If some people got their arm bit off, they would just give up.

Her book

She is also a good role model for many people for what she did. She turned a negative issue into a positive one by not giving up. She has inspired me to do anything I believe in and not to give up. Bethany Hamilton has accomplished a lot in her young life. I am proud to call Bethany a hero.