In 2008, Reader's Digest celebrated 13 ordinary citizens who unexpectedly found themselves confronted with desperate situations--and acted. Their stories are told here. You let us know who inspires you the most by voting in our Hero of the Year poll, and here are the nominees.
Part-time ranger Marc Ellison was leading visitors on a tour of the Timpanogos Cave National Monument, south of Salt Lake City, when a fellow ranger shouted that a child had fallen down a cliff 1,000 feet above the American Fork River. Three-year-old Paulina Filippova was hiking with her Russian immigrant family when she strayed from the path and slipped over the side. Mickey Horak made his way 60 feet down to when Paulina clung to a tree root. Ranger Ellison climbed down a rocky slope until he reached the pair. Horak was able to ease the bleeding child into Ellison's arms, and together the three inched upward to the safety of a narrow ledge and waited for search-and-rescue teams to arrive.
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