American Icons

Mother Teresa was and still is to this day an inspiration to many people. The amount of work and dedication that Mother Teresa put into communities and to the help of children is unbelievable and looked upon as amazing acts of charity. Born in 1910 and of Albanian decent, she was called upon by God at 12 years old and entered ministry by becoming a nun at age 18. In 1950 Mother Teresa received permission to start her own order, "The Missionaries of Charity" which was started to love and care for those who have no one to look after them. The order moved throughout many different countries and the mission is to help those who are in need of help, assistance, love and hope. Homes in North America, Europe and Australia have been set up for alcoholics, AIDS sufferers and those in need of a home. Mother Teresa is also known for helping the children who were in need of help. She was said to have collected shoes for children and once the shoes were all taken, she would take a pair for herself even if the size was too small for her.

I find Mother Teresa to be a wonderful inspiration. I feel like I can relate to her because she was so involved with the charity work and making it possible for people who feel unloved and unaccomplished to actually have a sense of love and hope within themselves. I really enjoy helping others in the literal sense of going out and doing community service, but also helping by listening to someone who needs to know that someone actually cares.

Sally Ride was the first american woman in space and she made it known that women are capable of becoming astronauts and the bigger picture of being able to do anything they put their mind too. Sally Ride started off pursuing the career of being a professional tennis player. After graduating from a full ride scholarship for tennis, she decided that the sport wasn't the road she wanted to go down. She then enrolled at Stanford University to study astrophysics but it wasn't till NASA was looking for astronauts that she pursued her real calling. Six of the 44 astronauts chosen were female and Sally Ride was one of them. It wasn't until 1983 that she had her first mission to space on the Challenger. Sally Ride was the first american woman to go to space and became an inspiration to many.
Sally Ride is an inspiration to many girls and to me as well. I have gone to several of her events where she guest speaks and has science organizations available to speak to girls who might be interested in going into the field. Sally Ride really made it possible for girls to pursue their dreams, especially in science. She was the first woman to go to space and that shows immense dedication to her dreams and being able to accomplish something that she wants to do. 

Misty May is known to be one of the best beach volleyball players, if not the best. She began playing volleyball as a young girl when her dad, who was in the 1968 Olympics, taught her and worked with her on her game. Her babysitter, Karch Kiraly was even an inspiration to her as a three time winning olympic gold medalist. Misty May continued to play through high school as well as college and she lead her team to many victories. Joining the national indoor US team in 1999, she soon learned that the indoor volleyball was not for her. Misty May found her liking to be with beach volleyball and later moved her way to the olympics, partnering with Kerri Walsh. In their entire career, Misty May and Kerri Walsh have had over 105 wins including AVP, FIVB and the olympic games.
Misty May i a role model to many young girl volleyball players. She talks to girls who play and she encourages them to work hard at playing the sport they love. To every girl she says "Dream in gold," and thats what many girls love to hear from their favorite volleyball player. I personally have met her and she came to a huge volleyball tournament up in Irvine. She spoke with a bunch of the girls and she walked around the courts to watch some of the games that were going on. Someone that actually cares about the youth and is telling them to follow their dreams is definitely someone that will be looked up too.