CC, so sorry to hear about your mom. But she sounds like a woman of great strength, so I'm sure both of you will be fine. Best wishes.
This topic is so interesting to me because I realized in reading it I never really thought of myself as having heroes. I don't know if that's good or bad. I certainly did as a child. George Lucas was one, simply because he made me want to make movies. Astronauts. The Challenger crew.
My grandfather is one of my heroes. I think the biggest hero in my life now is my cousin Kim. She's a bedrock of joy and passion for life despite all the things that would otherwise impede her. She's a bright shining light in an often dark world and she makes me smile. That's heroic.