Daniel Hernandez received a standing
ovation at Wednesday night's memorial service to remember the victims
of Saturday's deadly shooting in Tucson, Arizona.
Hernandez's quick thinking is credited
with helping to stop Arizona Representative Gabrielle Giffords'
bleeding after she was shot in the head during the outdoor rally.
Six people, including a federal judge
and a nine-year-old girl, died during the shooting rampage. Police
arrested 22-year-old Jared Lee Loughner at the scene.
Hernandez is openly gay and had been
Giffords' intern for just five days when he was asked to help out at
the event.
But at the memorial service, Hernandez,
who on Monday received a standing ovation led by Arizona Governor Jan
Brewer at the Statehouse, told the cheering crowd, which included
President Obama, that he's no hero, but that Giffords is.
“Though I appreciate the sentiment, I
must humbly reject the title of hero because I am not one of them,”
Hernandez, 20, said after Obama had praised him for his efforts. “We
must reject the title of hero and reserve it for those who deserve
it.”
He said the title instead should be
given to “glimmers of hope,” people like Giffords and those
taking care of her. (The video is embedded in the right panel of
this page.)