Nathan Cirillo is a hero…no accident.

What is a hero? Is your definition of a hero the same as mine? Is there a true definition of the word?

I believe heroes are whoever each one of us looks up to and admires, and they are not for other people to devalue. However it seems that is what Hamilton Spectator columnist Andrew Dreschel tried to do with an article he wrote just two days after the Cirillo family buried their 24-year-old son, brother and father.

The article is titled Cpl. Nathan Cirillo an accidental hero. In it, our actions as a city and a country honouring the fallen soldier are called into question. Dreschel asks, “Why is Cpl. Nathan Cirillo being mythologized as a hometown and national hero?” He continues by laying out the dictionary definition of a hero and telling us that simply putting on a uniform whether it’s as a soldier, a police officer or a firefighter is traditionally not heroic.

But haven’t we been taught, since our days in elementary school that these people are heroes? Is it not heroic for a firefighter to put on a uniform that will require them to run into a burning building to rescue others? Is it not heroic for police officers to put on a badge that will require them to step into dangerous situations in order to defend the safety of others? Was it not enough for Nathan Cirillo to put on a uniform that symbolized his desire to protect this country?

It’s not about the action of putting on the uniform Mr. Dreschel, it’s what the uniform symbolizes that makes these people heroes…that makes Nathan Cirillo a hero.

Dreschel also has us ask ourselves whether or not we would have been as emotional and empathetic if Cirillo was not as physically attractive and a young, single father. I can’t remember the last time I felt so offended by something I was reading. I do not judge anyone standing on guard for my freedom by their appearance, and my personal reaction was not based on Nathan Cirillo’s looks or his age. And dare I apologize for my human reaction to seeing a man’s 5-year-old son who doesn’t even really understand what’s happened to his father?

No, it’s not me who should be apologizing. Nor is it the thousands of people who gathered along the highway of heroes, or who silently watched as Cirillo’s casket, draped in a Canadian flag was carried in and out of Christ’s Church Cathedral as his family, friends and fellow soldiers said goodbye.

It’s Mr. Dreschel who should apologize, for trying to make our reaction seem like an overreaction, for saying that our feelings are unwarranted, for trying to change each of our own personal definitions of a hero.

A hero IS a firefighter. A hero IS a police officer. A hero is a mother, a father, a sister, a brother. And today Canada’s hero is Corporal Nathan Cirillo, because anyone who puts their life at risk to protect my freedom has more bravery than most of us could ever imagine, never mind possess. Nathan Cirillo is my hero, and an article peppered with disrespect and ignorance will not change that.