We had an, umm, somewhat emotional response to President Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday night. Remember that part about the people who give him hope? And the bit about how we're the ones who're making the change happen? Goosebumps.

So we decided to pay homage to 'Obama's heroes.' We wanted to introduce you to the people he talked about in his speech: the homeless high school student who won a science prize and the small business owner who refused to lay off anyone during the recession. These are the men and women who remind us of America's strengths and give us hope in its future.