Fairfield Mayor honors hero kids, gives them Raiders tickets

Oakland Raiders fans have not always been painted in a great light. People outside of Raider Nation often think of Raiders fans as the criminal element but us inside The Nation know there is more to us than that. We have heart.

It's sad that a small percentage of fans have created an image for our entire fan base that has been tough to overcome through the years. Even though every team has bad people within the fan base it is far too often the Raiders singled out as being malicious, though the truth hardly justifies the myths.

Part of this problem is that the overwhelming image that is remembered about Raiders fans is the gangster rappers repping the Raiders in the 90's and the local neighborhood gangster thugs stealing the Raiders symbol for their debauchery. A way to combat this image problem is simply by highlighting positive stories about some Raiders fans, and that is exactly what I am going to do now.

Many of us like to tell ourselves that we would run into a burning building and be a hero, but it is an entirely different thing being in the situation where that choice is in front of you. That is exactly what happened with 14-year-old Latrell McCockran on June 14 of this year.

This courageous young man risked himself to save an elderly man from certain death by fighting back against the flames and carrying the man to safety on his own back. As if that wasn't already enough, he also went back in afterward to save the disabled man's dog too. While Latrell was risking life and limb, his 12-year-old brother Latravion was running door-to-door warning neighbors of the dangerous fire consuming the building. They are both heroes today because of their actions.

The Fairfield City Council recognized the brothers for their heroics on Tuesday during a public presentation in their honor. They received an array of gifts from the Fairfield Fire Department and the City Council during the presentation as well. Besides gift certificates for new Jordan shoes, the brothers also received 4 tickets to go to an Oakland Raiders game.

"You serve as a shining example of the finest this community has to offer," Fairfield Mayor Harry Price told the two boys and I agree wholly. Not only are these two a shining example of the finest their community has to offer, they also are two shining examples of the finest Raider Nation has to offer.