For one Montecito, CA, man who was trapped in his home when mudslides ravaged his neighborhood, nothing represents the sacrifices of first responders better than a pair of shoes.
The kicks mysteriously showed up at his front door months after he gave them to a barefoot firefighter.
In the hour after a mudslide tore through Kevin Rittner's home, he signaled for help with a flashlight.
It was pitch black outside.
"About an hour later, this guy comes walking through," he said. "The mud is three to four feet high down here."
The guy was a firefighter who waded across the road to Rittner's property.
The firefighter was barefoot and alone.