They can't fly and they don't have laser vision, but what they do have is Carolina spirit.
Wednesday morning, a group of students, faculty and staff were recognized for their courageous actions during the sixth annual Hero Awards inside the Russell House Ballroom.
The ceremony, which lasted from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., served to recognize and reward members of the Carolina community who have gone above and beyond to help their fellow Gamecocks.
Some recipients have just been generally good people, offering their help to those around them in any way they can.
Other’s actions have been more direct, such as chasing down a mugger or talking a friend out of committing suicide.
In past years, two recipients pulled a person from the wreckage of their car immediately following an accident.Another helped his friend come to terms with a drinking problem.
Lauren Eck was up for a nomination after she reached out to an anonymous person on Yik Yak who posted they were on the top of a parking garage on campus and going to jump.
Eck commented, saying people did care about them and they were a part of the "Gamecock family."
After the person replied and said no one cared because no one came to talk with her, Eck called the campus police and informed them of the situation. They were able to talk the student out of the attempt, and the student went on to get help.
The Stand Up Carolina Hero Awards acknowledge the importance of accountable bystanders and the impact they can make by taking action and actively making a difference in someone else’s life.
The criteria for receiving a Hero Award covers a lot of ground. According to the Sexual Assault and Violence Prevention (SAVIP) website, an accountable bystander is “someone who sees a negative situation or event and intervenes in some way to prevent harm.”
As part of their recognition, each recipient received a framed copy of the Carolinian Creed, as their individual actions serve as a “wonderful example of what it means to be a champion of the Carolinian Creed and truly has lived out our university’s values of integrity, acceptance, respect, leadership and compassion,” according to the Stand Up Carolina office.
This year, there were a total of 65 nominations composed of students, faculty and staff. The group of heroes included Erik Frankforter, Tiffany Rogers, Mary Barradas, Adam Hartstone-Rose, Tushar Yadav, David Wheaton, Lynwood Watts, Zoe Henrikson, Deborah Beck, Davontay Brown and Gabriela Santos, to name a few.
An important consideration that SAVIP brings up is that being an accountable bystander doesn’t necessarily mean a person has to be physically or directly involved in a situation and that any action taken in order to aid someone else is more than enough.
Sometimes, simply making a phone call to the police or talking to a professor is all that’s needed to make a very big difference in someone else’s life.
Though nominations for 2015 are now over, that doesn’t mean you need to wait until next year to start helping make USC a campus full of heroes.
For more information regarding the Stand Up Carolina Hero Awards, contact Janece Gough at 803-777-8248, or by emailing goughja13@gmail.com.