From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishbe an inspiration to somebodybe an inspiration to somebodyHELPENTHUSIASTICto make someone feel encouraged to be as good, successful etc as possible People like Tara are an inspiration to us all. → inspiration
Examples from the Corpus
be an inspiration to somebody• Karen Woolley, 20, was an inspiration to many.• He is an inspiration to writers everywhere.• Secondly, our Gift Day in September was an inspiration to us all. 