Lou Gehrig

Even before being well-known for his disease, Lou Gehrig was already many young children's hero. With his Triple Crown, two MVPs, 13 consecutive seasons, 2,130 straight game, 6 World Series titles, 493 home runs, and his .340 batting average how could anyone not look up to this amazing baseball star. All of these accomplishments would be amazing for any athlete to achieve, but one thing about Lou Gehrig was even more special than these. The beloved "Iron Horse" as he was called would not live past the age of thirty-seven due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Lou Gehrig lived a very inspirational life in which he was brave and very determined.

Determination was a trait of this great hero and helped him through a tough childhood. Growing up a son of German immigrants in New York City was hard for Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig but after exploring his fascination of baseball he was a quick learn and was dubbed "the Babe Ruth of the schoolyards" in school. At age 15 Lou's father passed away which left the abandoned only child with only his love of baseball.

This soon to be legend was soon recruited to Columbia University for his talent. After rising to the top through his college years, this left-handed pitcher and first baseman was immediately drafted to play for the New York Yankees alongside baseball phenomenon Babe Ruth and quickly earned his nickname, "The Iron Horse." His coach described him as an excellent teammate and any fan of his would tell you about his great sportsmanship. Determination is what really helped Lou pull through in these tough times and encouraged his to keep trying and achieve what he wanted in life.

Lou began gaining record after record and even becoming the first person to hit four home runs in a game in 1932. Time later described him as the person who "takes boyish pride in banging a baseball as far, and running around the bases as quickly, as possible" as well as describing him as the game's number one hitter.

Being brave is also part of what kept Lou going for so long through these times of trials. Early in during his 12th season with the Yankees and through his 1939 pre-season games and practices Lou noticed that his level of play has started to decrease and his coordination was not as great as it was previously and even batted a .143 which was a major disappointment from this legend. By instruction of his fellow teammates and wife Eleanor he visited the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota and talked to Charles William Mayo his longtime fan and new doctor. During this time there had to have been many fears running through his head but he kept himself level-headed though all of this.

His condition was still progressively getting worse with symptoms including major muscle weakness and difficulty talking. He did not know it at the time, but this was only the beginning.   

Near the end of the 1939 season on July 4 (later to be declared Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day), the 35-year-old Lou Gehrig would stand in front of his loving fans, former teammates, and devoted wife Eleanor in his beloved stadium to address them and tell them that he had been diagnosed with an incurable disease called Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis or A.L.S. (later nicknamed after him and called "Lou Gehrig's Disease") which would slowly break down the neurons in his body and most definitely kill him. He started this famous speech with these renowned words that have survived in loving memory "For the past two weeks you have been reading about the bad break I got, yet today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth." By the end of this awe-inspiring speech many of his family friends and fans were in tears.

Soon after this, Lou was soon elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame and his jersey number, number four, was retired, being the first one in baseball history. At age 37, on June 2, 1941, Lou Gehrig passed away in his sleep at his home in New York. Not only is he a hero but he is also an inspiration to many and one who will be in our hearts for an eternity.

Lou is my hero not because of all the inspiration that he gave me to never let up my game but also because my grandfather had this disease and died when my dad was very young. I don't know what it is like to live without a father but I know it had to be very difficult. This somewhat of a connection really makes all the difference for me when I chose my hero and proves to me that Lou Gehrig deserved the title of a hero. There have been many people with diseases and many baseball stars but Lou Gehrig's story is the one that really stands out to me not for the story but what he made out of it.