Superheroes do their thing from safe distance

Once upon a time, there was a group of superheroes who stepped out of the darkness to answer the call of frightened and worried children everywhere in the Buckeye Nation. The children, facing diseases with adults names or adversity that would frighten even grown-ups, called out for help when they were afraid or when things felt out of their control. Sometimes Mom and Dad could help; but sometimes they knew that they only ones to whom they could turn were the ones they knew would never be afraid — superheroes. Those calls were answered by the ordinary extraordinary volunteers from Superheroes to Kids in Ohio, a group of volunteer caped crusaders who swoop in to calm those fears, to lift those spirits and bring smiles back to little faces. These ultimate warriors swoop in in the nick of time and make their kids "honorary superheroes." The group has about 70 official "Super Kids" of all ages facing physical or mental challenges. Parents apply and, upon approval, kids go through a little ceremony of sorts while pledging the superheroes' ultimate oath: That they will never, ever give up. "They're the real brave ones. They're the real superheroes, not us. They're the ones who are really brave," said John Fehrer, sometimes known as 'The Batman with a Beard.' Those gallant men and women are members of the the Superheroes to Kids in Ohio, a small band of strong-hearted volunteers that started in 2010 who started donning superhero costumes and visiting children's hospitals and pediatric wards. Since then it has grown to a group of 90 volunteers, collecting even a crew of popular princesses and a handful of occasional villains, for when the need arises. But today the Superheroes are fighting a whole new villain — the COVID-19 scare that has sequestered all children to their homes, away from school and routines and surrounded by fears only an adult should know: joblessness, anxiety and news of a growing and invisible pandemic. The statewide quarantine has stopped even superheroes from visiting their SuperKids. But never fear: The superheroes, who always find a way to vanquish foes, are adapting their methods, too. With the technology buried in their lairs and caves and superhomes, the heroes are reaching out to their Super Kids. Superheroes and princesses have been recording "story times," posting videos online of famous heroes reading famous children's books. They've also been posting personalized mini-'shout out' messages to Super Kids. The Glendenning family of Parma Heights recently posted a message to one of their SuperKids. All the shout-outs encourage the kids to "stay strong, we're in this together, this will pass." Son Jacob, then 14, joined the group first after he was spotted at local fairs and festivals dancing in a Spider-Man costume with some friends. Jacob put out a hit, busking for tips as "the Dancing Spider-Man," and giving all those tips to children's hospitals. Pretty soon, he was followed by dad Bryan, dressed as the Hulk, and mom Gina, who spends her time flipping between Batgirl and Snow White. In their day jobs, they work in fire and disaster restoration. "I have a lot of sympathy and empathy for kids out there who don't have it as good as me. They're not as blessed as me, and some are really struggling. I thought I could get their mind off stuff," said Jacob, now 16, a sophomore who occasionally plays The Flash. "It's like they actually see the superheroes. They're really happy to see me. The look in their eyes when they scream 'Spiderman!' It's pure joy." "I do it because of the smiles it gives to children, even if only for that half hour. There's nothing comparable to it. To be able to bring some kind of joy in that kind of adversity — and the families, too, because they're going through it, too," Bryan said. "It's the Hulk they love, not me. I get swarmed, I get tackled. I love doing it. That is my stress release. Most people go to the bar. That's my bar. That's my drug." Aquaman, in an ironic twist, read "Rainbow Fish" by Marcus Pfister. Hector Cirilo lives in Avon and has been with the group from the beginning. He serves on its board, as does his wife, Stephanie. He spends his days working as a research and development technician in plastics, but in real life the basement of his Avon home is a "Batcave" of sorts, stuffed with some of his 12 characters as well as others he has done at the last minute, like Santa. The group is partnered with University Hospitals, Cleveland Clinic, and has its own room at the Ronald McDonald House of Cleveland. They regularly visit children's hospitals in Cleveland and Akron and did 145 events last year, he said. "A couple years ago, we lost seven kids. Out of those seven, we were pallbearers for three of them, dressed in superhero costumes," he said. "We treat our families like our own families. We try to help as much as we can." Cirilo said at Christmas, the group sends about 30 families $50 each, and partner with A Special Wish Foundation, Make A Wish, and Neighborhood Alliances. Feher of Medina County was led to the group through his son Xavier, who signed up to play Spider-Man and Robin at 9. Eventually Feher, a funeral director and consultant by trade, became Batman; his wife, Rachel, is Catwoman, and their daughter Brooke, 18, went from being a "blue shirt" — the group's non-costumed helpers — to Supergirl. Brooke recorded a shout-out to a 3-year-old named Ella, who is fighting an inoperable brain tumor. "I just wanted her to be brave though this process. She's super young, so you can only say so much but I wanted her to know that she is braver than me," Brooke said. In his years with the group, John Feher's met celebrity athletes, seen the superheroes pull a plane on a tarmac for the Special Olympics and gone on short flights from United Airlines gates in Cleveland, out around Cedar Point lit up at night, and returned to Hopkins Airport — or as they kids know it, the North Pole. While the kids are in the air, airline employees and volunteers transform the arrival gate to a winter wonderland, bringing in Santa and elves and gifts and snacks for all the kids to arrive at Santa's home. "A lot of us started in the group to give back but it's shocking what we get out of it. You leave as a better version of yourself," John Feher said. Kate Wilson of Rocky River read Dr. Suess' "Horton Hears a Who" while dressed as Wonder Woman. The property manager and mother of five said she's only been in the group for a few months, but she already feel like "we should be saying 'Thank you' when people thank us for doing events. Normally we'd be doing visits and going to events but we don't want to immune-compromise anybody right now, of course, so we thought this would be a great way to bring a little happiness to them." Lindsay Bookshar of Lorain sees her appearance as Belle as a natural extension of her desire to help others. She works as a special education teacher at Murray Ridge School and three times a week works for Save Our Children, an after-school program. She was the first princess to join the group, six years ago. She is reading "Oh The Things You Can Think" by Dr. Suess. "You get to be a different person and I feel like I have a good personality for it, because kids tend to gravitate to me," she said. "I decided to be a princess to cater to little girls. I love being able to put a smile on someone's face who is going through hard times. You don't even know the extent of what all they're going through, but if you can make that little bit of difference, that's why I do it. I like what we do. I like the mission." Superheroes to Kids in Ohio are not paid for any of their volunteer work and do not claim copyright to the characters they portray. For more information about the charity group, view videos, support the mission or to request its help, visit superheroestokidsinohio.org. Contact Rini Jeffers at rinijeffers@gmail.com.