9/11 - Never Forget
The 20th anniversary of 9/11 - a day when terrorists killed 2,977 innocent people, mostly Americans, but also citizens from 77 other countries.1 The aftermath of the attack on the Twin Towers has been described as a hellscape in “monochromatic gray.” Images of the Twin Towers in flames, the Pentagon burning, and the destruction in a field where terrorists intentionally crashed Flight 93 have come to symbolize a day that is a part of the very fabric of America. We must never forget that day, to do so would not only dishonor those who died but also result in losing a part of who we are as a nation.
We must remember all who died that day, but it’s important to acknowledge the heroes who saved so many. Today I would like to briefly speak about a few of those heroes. I mean no disrespect to the many others I don’t mention, but the number of those who acted heroically exceeds my limited abilities to speak of them all.
The Twin Towers
The first responders who ran towards danger in order to help others escape from danger are the public faces of the heroes of 9/11. As a result of their unselfish heroism 343 New York City firefighters and paramedics, and 60 New York City and Port Authority police officers died saving others. The sacrifices of these first responders did not end on 9/11. In the 20 years since the attack an estimated 4,000 have died early deaths from health issues resulting from their efforts during the attack and the recovery period. There are no adequate means to thank these men and women.
Rick Rescorla, an Englishman who served in the British military before becoming a U.S. citizen. After earning a commission in the U.S. Army he volunteered for duty in Vietnam and was assigned to the 7th Cavalry Regiment where he became a legend.2 After returning to the states he transferred to the Army Reserve and eventually became the Vice President for Corporate Security at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co. His office was on the 44th floor of the south tower where Dean Witter had twenty floors of office space.
Rescorla was in his office when the first plane hit the north tower. The Port Authority called and told him to keep his people at their desks. Rescorla replied, “Piss off…I’m getting my people out of here!” He is credited with saving 2,700 people as he organized and lead the evacuation while singing songs to help people stay calm - one of those songs was God Bless America.
Rick Rescorla was last seen going back up the stairwell to help others. During a phone call he spoke his last words to his wife: “Stop crying, I have to get these people out safely. If something should happen to me, I want you to know I’ve never been happier. You made my life.”
Benjamin Clark a former Marine who was a chef for Fiduciary Trust Company located on the 96th Floor of the South Tower. He’s credited with saving hundreds of lives. Largely due to his efforts everyone from the 96th floor made it out, well everyone except one. Benjamin Clarke was last seen when he stopped on the 78th floor to help a woman in a wheelchair. His mother explained “My son was a Marine, so you know he wasn’t going to leave anybody behind.”
The Pentagon
After the plane hit, Lieutenant Colonel Paul Anderson escorted a group of people, including a pregnant woman out of the burning building. Once outside he and Staff Sergeant Christopher Braman ran back in and saved four more severely injured people. They were prevented from going back again by firefighters, shortly after that confrontation the section of the building they would have been in collapsed. The firefighters kept these two heroes alive.
Lieutenant Colonel Patricia Horoho, an Army nurse who with nothing more than a first-aid kit set up a triage area to care for the injured. LtCol Horoho would become the Army’s first female surgeon general and retire as a lieutenant general.
Others risked their lives to evacuate the employees and children in the Pentagon’s day care center.
Flight 93’s takeoff was delayed 40 minutes. As a result the passengers learned of the attacks on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon shortly after they were hijacked, and knew the terrorists intended their flight to be used in an attack on another target. They took a vote and decided that was not going to happen.
Before taking action Thomas Burnett Jr., called his wife and told her “I know we’re all going to die. There’s three of us who are going to do something about it. I love you, honey.” Sandy Bradshaw, a flight attendant, called her husband and told him she was filling pitchers with boiling water. She ended the call with “Everyone’s running to first class. I’ve got to go. Bye.” And of course the famous quote from Todd Beamer “Are you guys ready? Let’s roll.”
The 33 passengers and 7 crew died heroes that day when the terrorists purposely crashed the jet in a field near Shanksville, PA.
These are only a few of the heroes that were everywhere that day displaying “American Exceptionalism” - a term considered xenophobic by many on the left.3 They are wrong. We don’t hate, nor fear foreigners, just love our country. For those who want to call me xenophobic because I believe in American Exceptionalism, honor our fallen, and love my country, well you can kiss my mask…I carry it in the back pocket of my jeans.
Keep those who died on 9/11 on your mind and in your heart…and be guided by the unselfish bravery of those heroes who gave their lives so others would keep theirs.
Nineteen terrorist also were killed. I don’t include them in the number who died because they do not deserve to be remembered along with their innocent victims.
His first combat as a U.S. Army officer was in 1965 at the Battle of Ia Drang which was the subject of the book, and subsequent movie, We Were Soldiers Once…and Young.
Merriam-Webster. Defines xenophobic as the fear and hatred of strangers or foreigners or of anything that is strange or foreign.