12/05/2006

Generation Why

'Treasurer of his class and hero of my heart'

Grandpa has been a lifelong inspiration

By MACKENZIE PAHL

Special to the Record-Eagle

Who is your American hero? Sammy Sosa, Wonder Woman, Popeye? What does "hero” mean to you?

This is something I asked myself when I started this essay, and I came up with three answers: compassion, determination, hard work. Popeye would surely fit, but someone else came to mind.

My grandpa.

My grandpa grew up on the top of Youker Hill, where he still lives today. He grew up as a farm boy with one older sister and foster brothers and sisters. The 60 acres that he grew up on and the 40 that lie next to it, which he later bought, now serve as his home.

I often remember all of the New Year's Eves that all of the Nickersons sat around the campfire and listened to my grandpa or the time that my grandpa took me to my hunter's safety class and helped me out with it. On Oct. 2, 2006, my grandpa underwent a cardiac catheter with angioplasty and stent implantation into two major arteries. I knew he'd be all right, but I knew he'd never be exactly the same.

Today, just like any other day, my grandpa has just as much compassion, determination and hard work in his heart as Sammy Sosa, Wonder Woman or even Popeye. That is why he is my American hero.

If you ever happen to be visiting Buckley School, look for the picture of the graduating class of 1960 on the wall. There you will see my grandpa, Arthur Gaylord Nickerson, treasurer of his class and hero of my heart.