Everywhere in the world, we can observe and be touched by acts of kindness. People from all walks of life, faiths, and cultures extend themselves beyond the call of duty to help others unconditionally. Through their noble deeds, humanity as a whole is elevated.

To commend virtuous actions and encourage more people to be inspired by their examples, Supreme Master Ching Hai has lovingly created a series of awards, including the Shining World Leadership Award, Shining World Compassion Award, Shining World Hero and Heroine Awards, Shining World Honesty Award, Shining World Protection Award, Shining World Intelligence Award, and Shining World Inventor Award, to recognize some of the most exemplary, generous, caring, and courageous people who walk amongst us.

Welcome, cherished viewers, to another edition of the Shining World Award series, celebrating the marvelous, life-saving actions of two loving canines. Our first Shining World Hero Award Laureate is fittingly named Hero, a Weimaraner-German Short Hair mix, who lives in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania USA. She bravely saved her human family by alerting them to a house fire. Her caregiver Emily Rankin now relates the details of Hero’s rescue efforts.

What happened was my mom was sleeping, and Hero usually wakes her up, so we can let her outside to go to the bathroom. But my mom let her out, and my mom went to go upstairs, but Hero just kept pulling on her robe and pulling on her robe, and barking at her, And mom’s like, "Okay, okay." So my mom went to the kitchen, and got something to eat, and sat down and started watching TV, and Hero was still barking.

And all of a sudden, my mom heard like a "pop, pop" and like a "shuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu." And she ran to the kitchen, and the whole wall was on fire. And so my mom ran upstairs and she's yelling, "Fire, fire, fire!" And so we were able to get out of the house because of her.

Perhaps Hero knew exactly what to do during the emergency because one of her caregivers, Keith Rankin, is a firefighter!

Are you a fireman?

Yes. When we all ran out of the house, I ran down and grabbed the fire extinguisher, but it was just a little one and it ran out of puff, and the fire was still going. I tossed it and ran out the door.

Prior to this event, Hero had a severe accident, but by God’s will she survived and remained with her beloved family.

September of last year (2010), my mom was walking her along the side of the road. And all of a sudden, we think it was a drunk driver, hit her right paw, and they just left the scene. It was a hit-and-run. And we got to the veterinary hospital about an hour away. And all of a sudden, I’m like, "No, No, No." They were going to amputate her leg or put her down. And I said, "Neither of these is an option. I want her to have her leg, and I don't want to put her down.” So we went through, about 12 casts, and by January she was done with her casts. And in February, she saved us.

How did Hero get her name?

A lot of people asked, “Did you name her after the fire?” And I'm like, “No, I named her before the fire.” It's just a coincidence that it happened. But usually people say, “Oh, they get their names and they're the opposite of what they are,” but she was exactly what her name is.

I think truthfully, even if her name was Lily or Spot or something, she still would have saved us because she's just a sweet dog, and, I mean, any dog has that instinct no matter what their name is, it doesn't matter.

In recognition of Hero’s loving efforts to safeguard her family, Supreme Master Ching Hai honored Hero with the Shining World Hero Award and sent her a letter of recognition, from which the following is an excerpt:

Dear Hero, It is with much admiration and gratitude that we present to you the “Shining World Hero Award.” At three in the morning, with everyone else fast asleep, you were the only one who could see that a fire had started in the kitchen. It was your caring and rapid response that thus saved your family from the fire because they did wake and were even able to warn the neighbors in time to save them as well.

For outstanding faithfulness to your human family, for your acute understanding of the danger of fire to your loved ones, and for your clever response, which saved so many people, we hereby applaud and celebrate the heroic deeds of super canine Hero. With Best Wishes and All My Love, Supreme Master Ching Hai

In addition to the Award and letter, Supreme Master Ching Hai provided Hero with US$200 for veggie treats and other items along with a warm doggie bed, a scarf with Hero’s name on it, a custom-fit Hero jacket, and a selection of her DVDs. A number of books were also gifted including Supreme Master Ching Hai’s poetry collection “The Love of Centuries,” as well as her #1 international bestsellers, “The Dogs In My Life,” “The Birds in My Life” and “The Noble Wilds.”

Wow! Thank you. I know Hero appreciates it, she loves being loved like this. She was so excited.

It’s wonderful. And she will definitely use it because I love to put coats and everything on her. And I’ll definitely read the books. But thank you so much. So it’s just wonderful. We’re overwhelmed.

Our next Shining World Hero Award Laureate is six-year-old Husky Luna, who after digging a one-square-meter hole, alerted her caregiver Jenny Conarroe, Ms. Canarroe’s husband and the six children in the family of a dangerous gas leak in the backyard of their Alberta, Canada home.

And what happened was it was a rainy night and she had to go outside, so I let her outside and then she came back in and actually, before she came back in I had to call her to come back in because normally she comes in on her own, but this time she didn’t. But when she came inside, she was just covered in mud like all over her head, like on every part of her body she was covered in mud. Because it was so late, I just got a towel, cleaned her off and went to bed. It wasn’t until the next day that I took a look at what she did out there and found out she had dug a hole that was probably about as big as this table, but about a foot deep.

So then what happened was we noticed it had filled with rainwater partially and little bubbles were rising to the top. And our neighbor came and took a look and he said, “Well, that might be a gas leak; we should call and find out for sure.” So the gas company came down and they checked and sure enough, it was a gas leak. So, right away, they fixed it through the night in the rain.

Amazing. And if it hadn’t been discovered so quickly, did the gas company say what might have happened?

They didn’t say, but I know that there’s a potential for it to explode. It happened in the neighborhood a short time after the gas leak was found in our backyard. So I know that that can happen.

Wow, so she’s really a life-saving dog.

That’s what I believe. And that’s what everybody tells me.

Before discovering the gas leak, Luna was also around to save the day for one of Ms. Conarroe’s sons who is four years old.

So he was out wandering around by himself and a police officer went up to him and asked him, “Where do you live,” and he couldn’t tell an address, he doesn’t know our actual address but he just said “We’ll follow Luna.”

So they did. They followed Luna and she walked him right back to our house, where he was brought home safe and sound. So it worked out. He was safe.

For her keen intelligence and devoted efforts in protecting her family, Supreme Master Ching Hai honored Luna with the Shining World Hero Award and also sent her a letter of loving gratitude. The following is an excerpt:

Dear Luna, It is with much pleasure and admiration that we present to you the “Shining World Hero Award.” Perhaps it was the love of your human family members that provided you with the great strength and courage required to fulfill your task; surely one cannot imagine the consequences if the leakage had not been detected in time. Bravo, Luna! It is no wonder you have always been the family’s pride and joy!

May you enjoy many more cherished moments with your beloved human family. For being a loyal and trusted aide, for your vigilance and swift reactions and for your great love and dedication, we hereby applaud and celebrate the heroic and Herculean deeds of Luna, the six-year-old super Husky. With Best Wishes and All My Love, Supreme Master Ching Hai.

On Supreme Master Ching Hai’s behalf, our local Association members presented Luna with US$200 for veggie treats and other items. The noble canine also received a custom made Hero jacket and scarf with her name on it, a selection of Supreme Master Ching Hai’s DVDs and books including “The Dogs in My Life,” “The Birds in My Life,” and “The Noble Wilds.” Jenny Conarroe had the following message for Supreme Master Ching Hai:

Just thank you so much and thanks for bringing to light the amazing story that my dog did. We think that she’s a hero and she’s awesome. We’re just so happy to have her.

And I’m glad that this kind of story can get out to people in the world just to learn how amazing animals are.

Our gratitude, Hero and Luna for providing us with wonderful examples of selfless love of others. May the Divine forever bless you both with great happiness and comfort in the company of your caregivers. Thank you for watching this edition of the Shining World Award series. May the blessed gifts of our animal friends help lead the world to a brighter future.