ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, February 14, 1997 TAG: 9702140067
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: ORLANDO, FLA.
SOURCE: The Orlando Sentinel
Herbert Tarvin may be only 11 years old but he already has struggled with his demons.
He lost the first battle when, on his way to school Jan. 8, he joined the feverish crowd and grabbed a handful of change spilled out of an armored Brinks Security truck that overturned in Overtown, one of Miami's poorest neighborhoods. His haul: 85 cents.
But he won the second battle, surrendering to his nagging conscience less than an hour later when his teacher stood before the class and asked if anyone had taken the money.
He jabbed his hand into the air and surrendered the coins he had planned to deposit in the bank for his future. In return, the boy has won accolades, coast-to-coast press coverage and - on Thursday - a trip to Walt Disney World.
``What Herbert learned from this is that honesty is a part of the real world and good things happen to people who are honest,'' said Ardie Edwards, Herbert's sixth-grade teacher. ``The children see that there is a positive side of being a good person.''
But all the good he has brought to himself, his family and his classmates - a free flight on Southwest Airlines, free tickets to the Magic Kingdom and a chance to be grand marshals of the park's daily parade - didn't come without a little guilt.
Herbert knew he shouldn't have taken the money - his mom and his teacher have taught him better than that, he said - but he did it anyway.
``It was a temptation for me to get the money because money is the root of temptation,'' he said, wearing a Mickey Mouse top hat and surrounded by smiling reporters. ``But then I chose to do the right thing.''
Still, he knows that there are plenty of other people who did the right thing and received no praise at all. His buddy, Samuel Patterson, for example, lives across the street from the spill. He and his mother watched the looting from their car.
Classmate Laudzjean Jacques passed the action as she walked to school. She didn't think of stopping.
But rather than being resentful, Herbert's classmates rejoiced in their friend's celebrity status Thursday. When television cameras zoomed in, they jumped out of the way. As they walked from ride to ride, many of them repeatedly pushed Herbert to the front of the pack.
``Some people thought he shouldn't say anything - you know, like, ``Finders keepers, losers weepers,''' said Samuel, 11. ``But that changed because of Herbert. He is a role model for kids. Maybe if they found money, maybe they'd think of him and give it back instead of keeping it.''
Herbert said he hopes that's the case. Kids should do the right thing because it's the right thing, he said - not because they might get a reward for doing it.
``I would have been proud'' even without the publicity and prizes, Herbert said. ``I would have gotten a blessing anyway. I'm proud of myself -if I got the attention or not.''
LENGTH: Medium: 61 linesby CNB