Ryan Wayne White

Ryan White's class photo (google.com)

My hero is Ryan White. A hero is a person who is famous for doing something good for the world and not just for himself. He must think for others before himself, and be positive about it, too.

Ryan White was a hemophiliac who then became diagnosed with AIDs at age thirteen. He got AIDS through blood based products used to treat his Hemophilia. He figured out about his disease when he got a severe lung infection and was not supposed to live for more than six months. It was a struggle for him to get accepted to schools because of his sickness. For several months he had to be taught by telephone because he was not allowed to go to school.

When Ryan was finally able to go to school, many parents decided to keep their children away from him by homeschooling their kids, and by suing to keep him out. So then Ryan and his family decided to move to another community so that they would be accepted in the community and at the school, too. When the Whites moved to Cicero, Indiana, Ryan was enrolled into Hamilton Heights High School. The people there were more educated about AIDS and Ryan was not bullied. He was accepted by everyone. He was then interviewed on several shows and there were many articles about his story.

Ryan White has inspired me because even though Ryan wasn't accepted by others, he still kept trying to get a good education. He didn't give up. If I could not give up on my goals like Ryan, I could earn those goals. That is why Ryan has inspired me.

Ryan was a good person but everyone was afraid of him because they were afraid of AIDS. Yet he still kept going. Like I said at the beginning, a hero is someone who is famous for doing something good for the world. Ryan helped us learn that just because he is different, he can still be normal. That is why Ryan is my hero.