9/11– North Escambia Remembers

September 11, 2011

For this tenth anniversary of 9/11, we asked our readers to share their thoughts and memories of September 11, 2001.

Here is is a look at 9/11 in the unedited words of our readers:

Scott Nelson, father of LCpl Travis M. Nelson

At home waiting on a permit to come in from the State. Found myself glued to the tv for hrs. Outraged and furious, started trying to figure a way to serve our country, knowing I couldn’t rejoin the Army because of my age. I finally accepted a job offer from ITT to go to Afghanistan w/the 101st airborne and help initialize the communication infrastructure. Not having a security clearance in 20 yrs, they got me approved for a temp. Long story short, 3 days before departure, DSS froze all temp. Security clearances for security purposes. I was devastated. Had my flight ticket in hand and was in constant communication with the commanding officer in Kandahar. Everything happens for a reason, didn’t want to hear it at the time. So I took the next offer in line and that was military installations in Japan. I assume this is what sparked Travis’s thought process and we didn’t know it at the time. He overheard conversations between his Mom and I, he told me this is when he started wanting the military. He was 9.
9/11 changed the world and its people forever.

Lindsay Rector

I was in 7th grade homeroom at ernest ward middle school. The whole day was a huge blur we all just sat and watched as the events of the day unfolded. I still remember sitting frozen as the second plane crashed. The events of the day still rest heavily on my mind now more then ever as my husband and brother proudly serve in the US navy! May we never forget!

ProudArmyParent

I would like to pay my respects to…..Aram Iskenendarian, Morty Frank, Michael Horn, Dennis Buckley (all four worked for Cantor Fitzgerald) and Patrick o’Keefe (FDNY, Rescue Company 1) were all killed in 9/11. These were “boys” I went to Lynbrook High School with. I miss their smiles at class reunions, and their e-mails to me. just to say hi and keeping up to date on themselves, their families and Lynbrook. Now I see their children grow up without them and I keep up with these families through friends and relatives who still live in New York. God Bless you all! I Remember You All, and All the others that were lost on that fateful day.

Scobie Wilcoxon Sr

At home with my Dad. My Mom had heard it on the radio at work and called us to tell us something was going on. We turned on the TV to check it out and became hypnotized and speechless during the whole ordeal. I remember us talking about how our world was going to be changed. I had no idea that things would be the way they are now and that my son and nephew would be fighting in this ‘War on Terrorism.’ My kids were both students at Northview at the time and I had to fight the temptation to go get them so I’d know they were safe. We didn’t know what would be happening next. Dad and I had to work that night and I remember how eerie it was to look up and not see airplanes in the sky. Things seemed so strange and insecure. I will never forget that day.

Lacy Pace

I was at home taking care of my baby at the time. I just sat there crying and in total shock. Didnt even hear my son crying in his crib from being in total shock. Then as I was feeding him the 2nd plane hit. I just dropped the bottle and held him so close and prayed for all them poor helpless people.

Rita Armstrong-Turk

I was at home , working at Z tel or trinsic during that time but i saw the 2nd plane hit and was in total awe,, I said we going to war… that day at work as time went by reality set in how devastating it was, the people in new york used our phone com and could not get signals due to the towers went down that housed the communication towers, and people having to walk across the brooklyn bridge due to traffic stop .. it was awful…

Heather Cagle

I was in the 8th grade with 9/11 happened, i remember watching the second plane run into the tower. At the time no one was really sure what was going on. It wasn’t until we got to school that we found out the Pentagon was hit. I was in english class when the Towers fell. I remember many people crying and lots with confused faces case we really didnt understand it.

AL

I was on my way home from an overnight shift at the ER. The radio DJ announced “apparently there was an accident and a small bi-plane hit the World Trade Center”. I was home and in bed before they announced the truth.
When I woke up just a couple of hours later for my 2nd job I found out what had happened. All we did was sit on the floor and watch the coverage in tears and disbelief.

A week later I went on a motorcycle trip to north Alabama and was teary eyed again as we rode through small towns dripping in red white and blue

sixthgrader@thetime

I was in my sixth grade first period history class. I remember the principal coming onto the overhead, telling all of the teachers to turn on their t.v’s. We all sat there completely quiet as the towers fell. My teacher was crying, the rest of us to young to really understand sat in silence. Then it seemed like every boy in our class vowed to join the military and fight back. For the rest of the day all we did was watch the news..no classwork… just watched as the world stopped.

God Bless America!!!

JimD

I was still in the Air Force, stationed at RAF Croughton in England. Croughton is a small village just north of Oxford, England. I was working with some people back in the US, when someone point out the “accident” that happened in New York…a plane had struck one of the World Trade Center Towers. I stopped to look at the story for a minute, and then went on about my business. Then the other plan hit…and I knew this was something different. We immediately placed all “off duty” personnel on a telephone recall, and dropped to a 12 hour shift schedule. This was in preparation of what might come.

I was to supervise the night shift so I was dismissed and sent home. FOX, CNN and British SKYNews were all flashing to horror over and over on TV. The next day, the front gate was awash with floral tributes to the people of the United States. The outpouring from the local British community was overwhelming and the gratitude was greatly appreciated by the Americans stationed there.

MicheleG

It was grandparents day at my son’s school, he was in kindergarten, and I had just given my youngest a bottle and was going to take a nap with her. I was watching the Today show and they broke in with a report that a small plane had hit the North Tower and they were showing video of the smoke coming from the building. I really wasn’t too concerned until I heard Matt Lauer say “Oh My God there is another plane”. I knew then something wasn’t right. I just sat and stared at the TV in utter shock. I called my husband at work and told him what was going on, while we were on the phone the report of the pentagon came on. I was scared and didn’t understand what was going on. I sat for days watching TV and crying for those that were looking for family, crying for the firefighters that knew that had gone into their deaths. As we approach the 10th anniversary I am shocked at how raw the feeling still are. I have asked my son, now 15, what he remembers from that day. He has said he remember his grandparents were at the school and that they turned the TV’s in his class on. He said now that he didn’t understand what was going on only that the adult were upset. I have saved the drawings that he did for weeks of the buildings on fire. I just pray that America hasn’t become complacent and hasn’t forgotten.

James

September 11, 2001, where was I? I will never forget that day. I had just started my first of 3 days off as the Military Police Watch Commander at NAS Oceana. I woke up that morning to a phone call. It was my best friend telling me to turn the television on. As I turned it on the second plane hit the twin towers. I immediately told him I am on my way. Being one of the two anti-terrorism team leaders I knew I needed to get to work soon. I woke up my daughter and with her still in her pajama we ran out the door. As I arrived at the best friend’s house he jumped in as I kissed my daughter bye and handed her to his wife. We then proceeded to work.
The traffic was backed up as we approached the front gate. We had no option but to the take ditch. As we did several other members of the security force followed us. The guys manning the gate notice us immediately and sigh of relief came over them as they waved us on. My team quickly manned up and proceeds out to a staging point. The dedication and courage of the Sailors at the precinct was exhibited by not even one Sailor having to be called in. Focusing on reinforcing the security at the air station very few of us knew about the other planes. Additionally, my wife was deployed on the USS Enterprise so my family had to drive up from Walnut Hill to pick up my daughter, since we were working 14 hour days and unsure when the next time we would be going home would be.

Candy Knight

On Sept 11, 2001 I had been newly hired at International Paper (the sawmill in McDavid) and was in training. Of course there were no TV’s or radios in the room so we had no idea of what was going on. Our plant manager, David, had left the room and came back with a very concerned look on his face and proceeded to tell us what had happened. At this point, 2 planes had hit both towers in New York and we obviously was under some sort of terrorist attack. I immediately thought of my children. I was torn between staying at work or leaving to go and get them from school. But then what? I thought I’d just take them home so we would all be together in case anything else did happen. After all, we had no idea what was coming next. I ended up staying at work..which was torture not knowing what was going on outside our doors. After finally getting home we just sat around the tv watching everything that had happened that awful day. I remember the sick feeling I had in my stomach while watching the twin towers crumble, knowing there were thousands of people dying as we watched. It was just heart wrenching! It was like you were frozen in time!
Two years later we visited Ground Zero on vacation. It was so sad! There was a huge fence around the entire area and there were flowers, pictures, letters, etc hanging on the fence still. Inside the area there were hundreds of construction workers still cleaning up the rubble. It was just a HUGE hole that you were looking into. The buildings around the site still had no glass in the windows and there were American Flags draping over the sides of some of the buildings, flapping in the wind. It was a very humbling experience standing there taking it all in, knowing how many people had died in that very same spot.
There were vendors selling books, pictures and T-shirts of the event. Even though I found that appalling in a sense, I still felt compelled to buy anything I could, just to have something concrete to take home with me. I still have the book and pictures that I purchased that day. Looking through the pages takes you back to that day and how you felt when you first heard what had happened. You can see the fear and disbelief in the faces of the people that were standing and watching this unfold in front of them. And then later, when the towers started to crumble you can see the pain in those same faces.
I found it amazing how our country rallied together and helped each other. Hearing the stories of all the heroes that either risked their lives, or gave their lives to save others just melts your heart! Those families should be SO proud!!

Tammy F

I was in Washington D.C. working on client site at the ATF. I heard about the first plane as I was going up in the elevator. Some of the special agents had TVs and we watched and saw the second plane hit. One of my co-workers decided we were going back to our office in Fairfax, VA. So, we left. I rode with a co-worker who lived in Alexandria. We saw the smoke coming up from the Pentagon on the ride back and heard about a car bomb (which was false) at the State Department. As we were driving out of D.C. my co-worker said he wasn’t going to our office and was going to drop me off at my car at the Metro which was close to Fairfax. He was then going to turn around and go home (Alexandria is back toward DC). I told him to drop me off at the Metro so he didn’t have to drive out and back in but he was concerned it wasn’t safe and wouldn’t drop me off. If I remember correctly it took about 2 hours to get back to my car, which was probably at most 45 minutes away on a good day. I got in trouble with my mother later on that night for not calling her at work to tell her I was okay. She worked at Vanity Fair and I usually didn’t call her at work. I naively thought she wouldn’t know anything about it until after she got off work so I left a message on her home phone. Well, she did hear about it and she didn’t know where I worked, just that it was in D.C. So, she had been worried.

Terri Sanders

I was still in bed asleep.I woke up with a jolt at exactly 7;52 my first thought was. maybe a car wreck in front of our house. there had been a terrible tragedy .Since i am not a television watcher it was a couple hours before a family member called me to tell me to turn on the TV.

cantonment

I was at work when I got a call from my husband. Soon my co-workers were getting calls. We gathered in our conference room and watched events unfold on TV. We remained glued to the set all day. Very sad day. Hard to believe it’s been 10 years. It seems like it was only yesterday.

frances

I’m headmistress of a primary school in France, i was in the schoolyard, expecting for my students in the playground. The restaurant manager school arrived suddenly, she was listening to the radio… and she explained me the horror…..

429SCJ

I was sitting in my old mercury, playing with my 12 volt portable television, I had just bought, anticipating a camping trip. There was a breaking news alert, one of the twin towers of the WTC had been struck by an airplane. I thought it was an accident, until the second jet roared into the little 5″ picture frame. I remember inserting a magazine into my rifle and slinging it over my shoulder, I thought we were under attack, we were!

Vet

I sat on the couch, crying and in disbelief the entire day. Three days later I got a phone call saying I was going to be reactivated into the Army to return to my unit in the 101st Airborne Division, only to learn that I was ineligible, because of my disability rating. I tried to volunteer to return, to no avail. Now I wish I’d never gotten out.

Angel

I was here in Pensacola taking 3 little girls to ballet class from the daycare that I worked at when my husband called me to tell me the twin towers had been hit by jets and we were under attack. We had just visited New York one month prior because my Mom and two sisters live there on Long Island. My Mom and both sisters are Nurses there in three different hospitals and my brother-in-law is a New York City Policeman. I was frantic trying to get through to all of them and the phone lines were all tied up including cell phones, however I was fortunate and my family members were all safe. It was such a sad day and one that I will never forget. If we forget, we are doomed to repeat it.

Judy

I was living onboard the Joint Forces Staff College Navy Base next to Norfolk, Navy Base. I heard the news and hurried to pick up my children from school. I had three young boys and was 5 months pregnant with my 1st daughter, shortly after I pulled through the armed gate where I lived they closed the whole base to anyone trying to come through and those trying to leave. At the time I was alone as my husband was out to sea. As a matter of fact, his was the first aircraft carrier (USS George Washington) to reach New York. He said he could see smoke for days. My mother in Florida kept begging me and begging me to get out of there, that where I lived was the next biggest target on the East coast.
I remember lots of fear in those days after.
It makes me sad how quickly some people forget…

Brandy

I had called in sick to work on that morning, very rare for me being a single mom at the time.. I had taken my 18month old to daycare, so I could try to get some rest, I was laying on the couch and a Breaking News Story interrupted whatever it was I was watching.. I watched as thousands of peoples, including mine, lives changed forever!! My first thought, if this is THE END, I want my son with me, so I hurried to pick him up, and the rest of the day we sat together, snuggled on the couch watching the horrific events unfold, luckily he did not realize what we were watching was real, he knew mom wouldn’t let him outta her sight, not even to go play in the bedroom, I made him bring toys into the living room.. I called my family, and told everyone how much I loved them, just cause!!! I couldn’t be happier that Bin Laden has finally been brought to justice!! An eye for an eye, yet it will not bring back all those we have lost at his hands!! I pray for peace and closure for those who have lost loved ones and bring home our military!! THANK U TO ALL WHO HAVE AND ARE SERVING our country and protecting our freedom!

Rev. Gene Hudson

Our Senior Adult Sunday School class was just outside of Washington DC, somewhere in Virginia on a tour bus. All laughing and excited about spending a week in DC, when my wife called my cell and asked, if I had saw the news? “A plane just hit the Twin towers and another one the Pentagon, WE ARE UNDER ATTACK! “.
We found a truck stop at the next exit and joined a crowd in front of a TV, watching the news, (everyone was in shock.) We found a hotel and re-grouped, making our way back

chris

I was working around the house when my sister called and said are you watching tv, when i say no, she said” we are being attacked.!” I couldn’t understand what she meant, so she told me to turn on the tv and said goodbye. I turned on the tv not long before the first tower fell and it just didn’t register. I thought it was just a program on what could happen………it was like a bad dream. My first thoughts were omg! did they get all those people out of the buildings? I had lived and worked in lower Manhattan for 10 years just a short walk from the world trade center and that made it so hard to believe what was happening. I watched all day long. I had been at the top of the towers, had lunch in Windows of the World restaurant and knew what the view was from the top. When they showed people jumping out of windows near the top, it made me sick and mad that someone had caused so much human suffering.

Steven E Brown

I was on vacation from the Anesthesiology Department at the only Level One Trauma Center in Northern Virginia. My wife woke me and told me “someone just attacked the NYC World Trade Center”! I watched the pictures in shock. Then the Pentagon was hit. I called into my Department and went to help my colleagues at the hospital. All elective surgical cases were cancelled and 20-30 OR suites were made available with multiple surgeons, OR nurses, CRNAs and anesthesiologists. Burns were sent to the Burn Center in DC, minimally injured went to the nearest hospital to the Pentagon but there was no one left other than these. No one survived to come to my hospital. My Navy CAPT neighbor never came home.
May God Bless the USA and HE will continue to do so. May HE and HIS SON accomplish what I find so difficult to do, “forgive those that trespass against us”!

Bill Sherman

Do you remember where you were on September 11, 2001? … I do. It started out as just another day and then quite suddenly it became terribly tragic. I was coming home and turned on the radio. The news reports were talking about airplanes crashing in New York. I called my wife and told her to turn on CNN, that I didn’t know what was going on but I was on my way home. When I got home I sat in horror watching the replays of the first plane that crashed into the World Trade Center and then saw the unbelievable as the second plane flew into the other tower.

Do you remember hearing the reports of another plane crashing into the Pentagon? … I do. I watched as firefighters from the towns surrounding the Pentagon came rushing to the scene. I remember hearing of yet another plane crash in Pennsylvania and stared at the screen wondering when this nightmare would end. I remember hearing the reports of passengers on Flight 93 contacting their loved ones by cell phone. I remember hearing of the last words of Todd Beamer, as he and others gave of themselves and prevented that plane from becoming yet another weapon of terrorism. The words “LETS ROLL” will forever be a call to heroism for me.

Do you remember that on that day 2823 people died as the Twin Towers collapsed? … I do. On that day I also lost 343 of my brothers and sisters, three hundred forty-three fellow members of the International Association of Firefighters and International Association of Fire Chiefs, three hundred forty-three of New York’s bravest. On that day they willingly gave up their lives as they rushed unselfishly into buildings that everyone else was trying so desperately to get out of. On that day they were simply doing their jobs, unmindful of the consequences, trying and in some cases succeeding, in rescuing people, victims, from the worst act of terrorism to ever be visited upon the United States.

Do you remember that day? … I do. I will never forget it so long as I live.

FK4JC

I was working as a phlebotomist for Northwest Florida Blood Center when we saw it come over the TV. We just couldn’t believe what we were seeing. Most of us spent more than 15 hours drawing blood as people came out of the woodworks to donate. I remember feeling terribly sad and amazingly hopeful all at the same time. Sad for lives lost; hopeful that Americans – true Americans – are so loving and compassionate.

HEY

I was in 3rd grade, Mrs Linda Jacksons class when our principal came over the intercom to announce what had happened. we were not allowed to watch it on tv but we were sent home early after the school as a whole sang my country tis of the and the national anthem. I remember goin home and seeing it on tv and crying because i realized what really had happened…

Really?

I was sitting with the rest of my Junior Class in the auditorium at FHS. We were taking the ASVAB that day. There were two Army officers there administering the test. Mr. Corbin rushed in and spoke to the men. One got on his cell and made a call and then the two officers rushed out. It wasn’t until we finished the test and exited the auditorium that we started hearing about what happened. My boyfriend had called his mom to ask about something and she told him. She thought someone had bombed the Pentagon. I remember thinking they are blowing this way out of proportion. I thought people had been misinformed. It wasn’t until we got to Mrs. Lisenby’s class next and she turned on the T.V. that the realization hit me that it was real and worse than anyone could have imagined. I remember sitting in class shocked and speechless and wanting to just cry. All of those innocent people and their families. How could something like this have happened on American soil? I think up until that point I had thought that nothing like that was possible here. A lot of things changed that day. My prayers go out to all the people who lost their lives on that tragic day and their families they left behind. Praise to those heroic people who helped in the rescue efforts and those in the military who protect our freedom. God Bless America!

Misty

I was in my 9th grade BST typing class at West FL High school. Our teacher turned on the tv…. I will never forget that day. God bless America.

Melinda

I was setting in my chair in the living room watching my 8month old play in the floor. I was watching Good Morning America when it happen. All I could do was cry. I called my husband first because he was in the National Guard and he was at work in the oil field at the time. Then I called my mother and sister on three way. My little brother was in the service and I was deviated. All the lose of lives our country was violated in the worse kind of way!! My brother was deployed with in a month to Iraq then my husband. Both my husband and brother lost friends from their units to this war!! My God Bless all of OUR HEROS!!!

Shea Shea

I was laying in bed, 8 months pregnant with my son. I first remember thinking that it was a movie until I watched for a little while longer. My second thought was for my baby. I kept thinking, what kind of world am I bring my child into. I just wanted my loved ones close to me. It took me awhile to get my mind around the fact that this was happening. Then all I could do was cry. Those people who we lost were strangers but in the moment that could have been my family or friends. I felt the loss that greatly. We can never forget the lives we lost on the day and the consequences that happen when we hate . Every life is precious. I haven’t felt patriotic in a long time but in the moment we were truly “one nation under God” and one “American” people united in our grief. May God bless the families who experienced loss and those of us who mourned the losses. May God bless our enemies and before they leave this earth, may they repent before God for their sins.

Tara

I was getting myself ready to take my son to preschool, I froze in my path and sat on the couch and watched in shock of what was happening. Later that day, I went to work at Ztel. At that time New York was a large amount of our customers, I was a supervisor and I assisted on numerous calls of where people weren’t able to contact their families. It was a heart breaking day. I heard of all sorts of stories of lost loved ones. One of our main switches was located in the Towers and had been destroyed. Then, I found out my cousin was just a block away. And that my aunt was grounded in Las Vegas not able to get a flight back home. I remember the day was full of crying and panic. I remember questioning what the future had for my two children. I questioned how someone could do such to innocent people. And horrible those people must be. ….. God Bless this country. Prayers for the ones lost and their loved ones left behind. We should never forget! Those should never be forgotten!

brandon

i was sitting in my truck finishing my breakfast in front of the auto-mechanics building at jay high. i first heard the news of the first plane on the radio while listening to lex and terry(tk101) once we figured out it wasn’t a joke everyone went inside to try to find it on the tv in the class room of the shop. All of us teen aged boys and girls from 9th graders to seniors where glued to the tv in shock and near panic for our country. every class for the rest of the day was near silent as we watched the news and the story unfold before us trying to understand what was going on and praying for the families of the people that where lost on that horrible day.

waiting for justice

I was working in Flomaton and had made a P.O. run and stopped in the dollar store to get some office supplies. They had the radio turned up real loud and it seemed to be on a channel that was airing a soap opera, I thought…. I wondered what’s a program like that doing on the radio here in 2001. They were talking about the twin towers being hit by planes and speculating whether it was accidental or a terrorist attack. I thought about the “War of the Worlds” broadcast way back when and the terror everyone felt thinking it was real. The more I listened, the more this broadcast sounded real – then I heard customers talking about it – then I felt the terror. I asked the cashier what was going on and she asked me where I’d been. She told me about the crashes and I just couldn’t make myself believe we could be attacked like that. We had no tv or radio in the office, so I stayed outside most of the rest of my day listening to the radio in my car.

Remember how quite the skies were for a long time after that day? No, I will never forget! When will Bin Laden be brought to justice???

As I read all the comments, and the terrifying memories flooded back, I started crying again – for all the people who died, the ones hurt, those who lost loved ones and friends, for the brave firefighters, police, and volunteers, and for the security we all lost that day. We found out we are hated by a group of people whose total purpose in life is to kill Americans and we found out they can get to us here, on American soil. God Bless our military who are willing to lay down their lives for our protection and freedom. Let us never forget!

Remember

I was on my way to work that morning I heard the news on the radio…I worked at Pensacola NAS and when I got to work everything was on lockdown it took me at least an hour to get on base because they were searching everyone’s vehicle from top to bottom when I finally got to work they sent a lot of ppl home to be with their families so when I got home I don’t think we turned the TVs or radios on for the rest of the day….we just spent time with each other and prayed

interested reader

I walked into the beauty shop to get my hair done and the first words my beautician said were ” what do you think is going on in New York?” I’m not a big tv viewer so I had no clue what she was talking about. We started watching tv and were so shocked we couldn’t even believe it. As we watched the second plane hit and after that it seemed like the rest of the day and for several days afterward everyone was just waiting to see what happened next. Oh yes, I did get my hair done but don’t really remember how or what was done to it.

Lisa Pierce Gollub

paula,my mom was one of those bus drivers that day,and i was sitting in class training to be a bus driver and my son was in kindergarten ,i remember ,i was terrified

JUDY MASEK

getting off work, from baptist….headed to my daughters apt listening to 95KSJ..heard them announce the first one….felt a little bewildered……got to her apt and saw the second one…..now, in shock…went to walmart..it was on all of the overhead televisions…got home and then, couldn’t sleep….remember sitting in bed, sobbing, as i was glued to the television….
E.W. on September 11th, 2010 12:01 pm

I was on a flight headed to Ancorage Alaska which was an 8.5 hour flight from Atlanta and full of fuel.I had my pocket knife with on the way,but was not allowed to have it on the way back…..Glad I didn’t need it.

Paula Jernigan

Another line from Alan Jackson’s song…..”Were you teaching a class full of innocent children…?”

That was me; teaching middle school. The morning started with bus duty, and as cars came in to drop off children, parents reported hearing bits and pieces of news on their car radios and through phone calls from friends and family. We were stunned, but still didn’t know the magnitude of the situation. Then, over one of the bus drivers’ dispatch radio came the order for all middle school buses to immediately pull over and evacuate; someone had called in a bomb threat that morning, claiming “a bomb had been placed on a middle school bus.” Of course, that was a hoax, but terrifying while everything else was going on. We were hearing news reports of terrorist attacks, and our students were stranded on the sides of roads all over the county while law enforcement checked each and every bus before they were reloaded. I remember wondering about the “coincidence” of those events occurring at the same time. I deliberately didn’t turn the tv on in my classroom; I couldn’t bring myself to force my students face the images I saw when we gathered in the office for a few minutes before the bell rang. What I saw when I did watch TV after school will be in my mind forever. We teachers went on with our day, and tried to achieve as much “normal” as we could, knowing the world was changing moment by moment. The days after 9/11 were filled with answering unanswerable questions, comforting and alleviating fears, and rallying together to show our support of the United States and those who lost loved ones.

Aggie Mom

I was taking 3 little girls to ballet class when my husband called me on my cell phone to tell me we had been attacked. I spent the next several hours trying to reach my Mother and two sisters who are all nurses and work in 3 different hospitals in New York and my Brother-in-law is a New York City police officer. Never forget…God Bless the American people.

Just An Old Soldier on September 11th, 2010 10:49 am

When I got up that morning I was in a Peacetime Army, I was putting on my uniform and getting ready to head to work at Fort Bliss (El Paso, TX). I had the news on in the next room and heard that a plane had crashed into a building in New York. I thought it might have been a small plane that accidentally hit a building, and thought no more about it since I had to get going. Besides, a B-17 had hit the Empire State building during WW2 and it shook it off.

When I got in to Fort Bliss, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. I showed my ID card at the gate and rolled in to my parking spot. I was in a new job with a lot more responsibility, so I went into my office and head-down started digging into the “In Box”.

Suddenly a young Major ran into my office and said “There’s something going on, you need to come see this!”, I asked if it was about the plane hitting the building in New York, and said it was probably some pilot reaching for a casette tape on the floor of the cockpit when he crashed. “No, I don’t think it was a small plane”, he replied. I went out to a waiting area where a TV was on just in time to see the second jet fly into the second tower of the World Trade Center. “Jason”, I said to the Major, “we are at War. Get the senior NCOs and have them report to my office for orders. Now.”

I assessed our situation, El Paso is sitting within rock throwing range of another country, that even though a neighbor, hasn’t always been our closest friend in the world. I had my NCOs report all our section’s status, and set up a temporary Op Center for my department. I then told my boss what I was doing, and he looked stunned by the news, and told me to do what I thought best. I then called the Command group to inform them what I was doing, and called my senior staff liasons in Fort Sam Houston and Washington, DC to let them know that we were on emergency/wartime footing and stood ready for whatever happened next, and let them know our contact information. I then met with my commander and I let her know what I was doing. We held a hasty Command and Staff meeting and locked down our site. No one in or out. Prepare for defense against an attack.

I stayed up and on duty, coordinating actions and soldier movements, issuing orders for our operations, and monitoring for other enemy action, especially from south of the border,. Didn’t get much sleep, if any that night, or for the next week, but when I woke up that morning we were a Peacetime Army, and by the time the first Tower crashed down, we were a Wartime Army.

I will never forget that day.

AUfirefighter

I was an on-duty Firefighter (Shift Leader) just getting the 24hr shift started on that Tuesday morning. We had finished our morning assignments around the station when one of my Firefighters alerted me of the breaking news on CNN. We quickly gathered everyone around the television in disbelief of what we were witnessing and notified the other fire stations in our city who were already doing the same. I can still vividly remember the sick feeling that we all had, knowing that our Brothers at FDNY in New York were very possibly rushing towards their final call. It was almost unbearable to watch the Towers fall and know that all of those Firefighters who had fought their way up those thousands of stair steps to fulfill their obligation of saving lives and property were now victims of this tragic incident. I can also remember how tough it was to prepare ourselves to carry out our responsibilities in our own city with those thoughts in our minds. May our Fallen Brothers at FDNY rest forever in peace and may we NEVER FORGET the sacrifices they made in answering the “call”. May we continue to pray for their families, including their Brother Firefighters, who were left behind……and, to answer Alan Jackson’s question, I did call my mother. May GOD continue to BLESS THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!!!!!!!!!!!!

Splat

I was working at the blood center and had no clue as to what happened until hundreds of blood donors were lining up to give blood. The response was so great from the community….ECAT had their busses bringing donors to us. We had loc

Tammie

I was in Evergreen in Cosmetology class when my teacher, who’s husband works at Eglin, said with tears in her eyes “Everybody come over here something terrible has happened.” Her husband had called to inform her that there had been a terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. We turned on the tv. She explained to us that “there were probably 10,000 people in that building! She asked that we all gather in a circle, hold hands and PRAY! We did.
We were dismissed from our class and told to “Go home, hold your families and pray.”

On the drive home, I listened to the radio. The next plane had hit… the Pentagon….. the other…. I could not even grasp what was going on. The traffic on the interstate was slow. People just driving along, everyone listening to the same story no matter what station you turned to…… same story.

When I got home my son (then four) met me at the door…..”Look mama another one just crash!” As I watched it just hit me… My God! The magnitude! And then my son again “Look another one hit!” Over and over I watched the second plane crash into the World Trade Center. All I could do for days was watch the news trying to understand Who, What, WHY?

Robert

My family and I were in a motel room in Panama City, FL. We were at a Missions Conference that week and was getting ready for the day ahead that the church had planned for us. My Mom called us and asked if we were watching the news. We turned on the TV and saw the second plane fly into the second tower. Then we watched them fall. Like everyone else, i don’t know that I will ever forget the feeling that I had that morning

Lee Middleton

I was at the office, watching streaming video of the first crash and saw the second crash. About a dozen of us were crammed into my office, watching in total disbelief. Lots of questions and tears.

Jay Mom

I had just given my daughter a bottle, my mother and my inlaws were getting ready for Grandparents Day at my son’s school, and my husband was at work in downtown Pensacola. I was watching The Today show when they suddenly broke in with a story that a small plane had just hit one of the twin towers, I watched in horror as Matt Lauer anxiously said OMG there is another plane. Our whole world changed that morning. I Haven’t Forgotten, and neither should you. God Bless America! I remember being glued to the TV for days and crying for those lost. I personally didn’t know anyone involved, but I can still feel the pain to this day

Samantha

I was driving to work with my friend when the first plane hit. We heard that on the radio, so when we got to the office, we went to the attorney’s lounge and watched as the second plane hit. I called my mother and she told me one had just hit the Pentagon. The rest of the day, we sat and watched the t.v. and starred in disbelief. God Bless America!!!

Lisa Pierce Gollub

i was in training class to become a school bus driver,our director came in and told us ,and i remember just wanting to get to my children,i cant describe what i felt that morning

Atmore mom

My husband was working 3rd shift at that time. Our routine was, he would come home and have breakfast with our kids and love on them for a bit before they would go off to school. Then he would go to bed himself and sleep most of the day while the kids were gone. That morning when my husband went to bed, he had only been sleeping for about an hour, I think. I got on the computer and BAM, it was all over the internet. I really had no idea what I was looking at. Everywhere I tried to go on the internet, it was there. Finally I really started to read all of it. I couldn’t believe it! Should I go wake up my husband? But he just got to sleep. I had decided to continue reading a checking things out for a bit. When all of a sudden, the first tower fell. I remembered thinking, Oh my God! I had to go tell my husband. I finally went into the bedroom, gently woke him up and had explained what had happened. He, being partly out of it still, didn’t believe me. I told him it was true and I didn’t quite understand what it means. He sat up and looked me straight in the eyes and said, “We are under attack! We are at war!”
What? War? Here? In America?
It was all falling into place for me. Our kids are at school. Should we go get them?
We did not have cable at the time, so we sat around our computer and watched as everything unfolded right before our eyes. It was such a sick feeling.
I am all choked up as I remember this. Those poor people. I will never forget!

Sheri ed in NYC and she described the whole the thing to me play by play up until the first tower collapased, as the tower collapased the phone lines went dead. The Verizon switches for the entire Northeast section of the US was located in Tower 1 of the World Trade Center. I had written down that ladies phone number and when we were able to get back through to them about 2 weeks later, I called her to check up on her and found out that she had lost her son, daughter-in-law and her baby granddaughter who was at the daycare in the towers. that is definately one day I will never forget. I think of that family often.

I hope all will take time today to remember 9-11-2001

Nancy Gindl Perry

I was teaching Honors A&P at Northview High school when Terry Ravey told me about the first plane we thought it was a commercial airline accident so turned on the TV and watched live the second hit……Some cried, some prayed, but all said GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!! Needless to say not a whole lot of teaching A&P went on the rest of the day!

Jim Stanton

I was driving by the airport in Atlanta, noticing that no planes were in the air.

Mrs.Goodie

I was still providing childcare in my home at that time.The children were sitting watching Dora or something like that,while i was fixing breakfast.The tv in the kitchen was on and i watched as those planes hit the towers.For some reason the children were very quiet and well behaved that morning,and i was able to watch it all.Then when the news came on that there was another plane down,i had to turn the tv off.The children needed me and i had to keep smiling for them,but i will NEVER forget that feeling in my stomach that day.My heart ached for all those people,
the families,the friends who died and those who had to deal with the loss of their loved ones.May we never forget that day,God bless this great country.

Dr. Kevin R. Linam
At home with my youngest son, he was 9 months old! Between Barney and the Wiggles, switching channels and saw 1st plane fly into the tower! I began to pray, prayed most of the day, I believed we were going to see attacks across the country! Still praying, our country is not safe, we have a weak stance and administration -Obama goes around the world apologizing for America! Sad!
North Korea and other enemies getting millions in our tax dollars! God help us!

David Huie Green

I was watching ER on TNT when they cut to people running from the falling debris. I thought it was a strange part of the show until I realized it was not ER but was reality.

I went over to get my father and we went up to Century to think on what a terrible thing had just happened. As I passed the Courthouse I saw the flag was still flying at full-staff. I turned around, walked inside and choked out that they needed to change it to half-mast. They rushed to do it.

Same thing with Century City Hall. By the time we got to the post office, it was already at half-staff.

We went into Burger King, watched the word around us looking the same but knowing it was different.

One more voice

I got up and went to work that morning as usual. When I walked in, Judy, one of my coworkers, said, “OMG, what’s going on? Have you heard anything new?” I asked what she meant because I hadn’t seen anything yet. She told me that a plane had hit the WTC and there was no idea how many were killed. I remember standing there staring at her as if she had lost her mind. What? How could this be true?

We brought a small tv in and set it up so we could watch the news. I remember thinking that “we’re under attack and life as we know it will never be the same again.” We sat and cried and watched the breaking news all day. I was managing a restaurant then and we had no customers all day long. I called the schools to find out what they were doing and was told that all schools were locked down until further notice. We just sat there, looking at the tv, crying, occasionally going to the restroom to vomit, each of us lost in our own thoughts and fears, wondering if we were now at war and fearing that it was true, scared for our military loved ones and our families, worrying over our kids being at school and us being unable to be with them and scared that we were going to die and never see our children again, panicking over the thought that our country and our lives would be torn apart, fearing for our safety and most of all……wondering who was responsible for this heinous act and WHY?????

I remember thinking, to borrow a line from an old I think Don Henley or Glenn Fry song, this is the end of the innocence.

CNG

I was in the first grade at Bratt Elementary in Ms.Rollin’s class. I may not of understood it then but I do now. *tear*

kevin

wow i remember this very much. i was in high school junior year at northview (go chiefs) and i was in shop class and my friend jeff came out and said kevin a plane hit the world trader center. at that time i didnt know what the wtc was and he explained it to me. then watching the news live, we saw the other plane it. it was horrifying. wow i wont ever forget it

Lee

I was in San Diego Ca to support our military by evaluation their military training. My phone rang at 5:30 and the voice on the other end ask “are you watching CNN, turn on your TV.” I was still asleep but I turned on the TV and saw the picture of the planes at the World Trade Center. When we went to work we were all sent back to our room and told to await additional information. I went to my room which took about 4 hours to get to from where we were and was told to stay on base because I would not be able to get back on if I left. 5 days later I was able to leave the base and catch a flight back to Pensacola. I was never so glad to see the runway in Pensacola or hear the pilot say we are making our final approach into Pensacola.

J Gray

I was at home, on maternity leave, with my three month old son. My Dad (retired Navy) called me to ask if I had the news on, which I didn’t. He told me to turn it on because a plane had hit one of the Twin Towers. My initial thought was the same as most newscasters, ‘How could a plane hit such a large building?’. As I was talking to my Dad and trying to relay to him what CNN was saying the second plane hit and my heart skipped a beat. I told my Dad and he knew that it was no accident. As I was talking to him the plane struck the Pentagon, where one of my brother-in-laws worked.

I got off of the phone with my Dad and immediately called my husband who is a Reservist and works on a local base. My husband knew nothing of it because he didn’t have access to a television in his office. I got of the phone with him so he could go in search of a television and I called my sister-in-law. Luckily my brother-in-law had been running late that day and hadn’t made it to work when the plane struck the Pentagon. I remember sitting on the couch holding my infant son sobbing for all of the lost lives, knowing that my sense of security as an American was forever going to be altered and worried that my husband might get activated.

My heart goes out to all of the people that lost loved ones on Sept. 11, 2001 and to all of the people that have lost ones that are helping to protect our freedoms

nonpolitico

At work in my office at a local military base. I noticed that none of the online news sites would display and started getting quite irritated that I couldn’t find out what had been happening in the world. I mean, what could happen overnight, right?
Then we found out about the first plane so we flipped on the tv and watched the “instant replay” only to find out it wasn’t a replay, but in fact the second plane.
Then we found out about the pentagon, and I worried about friends of mine that worked there.

I’ll never forget the anxious silence and the image of the smoke of the buildings trailing off into the distance, or the interview with a husband who lost his wife in the crash, only to have to explain to thier young son who wondered when mommy was coming back that “Mommy isn’t coming home anymore champ, she’s looking over us from heaven now.”

Life has never been the same since that day.

stefanie roloph

I remember that day well, I was sitting in a class learning how to take apart, clean and put back together my m-16 at Fort Leonard Wood, MO. i had just started my basic training in the ARMY!! When some officers came in and asked to speak to anyone that had family or was from NY, then they came in and and told us what had happened. I was scared and the only thing i could think was that I was going to fight for my country and and family!! So that is what I was doing on 9-11-2001!! I WILL NEVER FORGET THAT DAY OR THE MEN AND WOMEN THAT LOST THEIR LOVED ONES AND THEIR LIVES THAT DAY!! GOD BLESS AMERICA!!

Shaun

You know at first when I see these stories on news sites over and over every year, I react with a sour feeling. One that thinks that we don’t need to keep reliving these heartbreaking memories of this day. But as I think more deeper, this is exactly what we americans need.
I can remember this day very plainly and will always. I was at work in Brewton and we had always kept the tv on cnn for some reason, and it came across. It was a sad day, life that day seemed like it just stopped. We had no more customers that day, seemed like the traffic just came to a halt. I would be amazed to know exactly how many viewers were watching the TV all day on 9-11. As the news got deeper and deeper I believe every living soul experienced a melancholy moment, even the ones who didn’t think they even had an emotional side. Then weeks to come, it just seemed like families were closer, people were more thankful for what God has allowed them to have, and life in general was just sweet. But since the year of 2001, I sadly believe many people have lost that feeling. People nowadays seem to have forgotten that horrific day, and are back to taking life for granted. I think these stories should air every day to keep it fresh on someones mind. Just think if you were to have had a loved one lost in this tragic event how you would feel today. People be thankful for what you got, stay close to your families, tell someone you love them for you never know when or if you could have another chance to.
God bless all the victims and there families of 9-11

jennifer

I was a senior in high school. I was sitting in Mrs. Taylor’s Spanish class. I will never forget it.

Rita

I was standing in the bathroom of my daughter’s apartment in San Antonio, TX getting dressed for work. I was thinking about a friend who had been badly injured and was in the hospital and as my thoughts raced through my mind I thought “That was bad, but something really bad is going to happen” and at that moment a flash went through my mind of an airplane low to the ground over an open space with trees in the background. I immediately prayed, “Dear God, please don’t let there be a plane crash anywhere, so many people die”. I put the thoughts out of my mind because I didn’t want to think of anything like that happening.
I left for work and stopped on the way for a breakfast sandwich and right before my turn onto the street at my work the news came on the radio that a plane had crashed into the WTC. My first thought was, “that was no accident”. I knew there was a “no fly zone” around the WTC. I went inside to my work and everyone was talking about what had happened and then came the news of the second plane hitting the other tower. No one could work . There was a TV in our conference room and everyone stayed glued to the TV. The request went out for people to give blood and our supervisors had told us we could go home. My intention was to go to a facility and do my part and give blood, but meantime the towers fell and my thought was then that I didn’t think there was going to be much need for blood considering the devastation of all of the buildings crashing. I thought, “how many could survive that”? Not too much later the word came on the news that there would not be a need for any more donations.
I went back to my daughter’s apartment and by that time she was home. We just sat and watched the news and cried.
In the few weeks after that I was driving down the street and the Alan Jackson song, “Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning?” came on the radio and I began to cry.
God Bless all of the families who lost loved ones that day, and God Bless the families who have lost loved ones in our military fighting to prevent this from happening again. God Bless our men and women who have been injured and their lives changed while fighting for our freedom. I am grateful. God Bless America!

James Moretz, Lieutenant Commander, USN Retired

I remember well that September day of eight years ago. I was aboard the USS NASHVILLE (LPD-13) in Norfolk, Virginia. My ship was being prepared for repairs at a local shipyard and the crew was out and about taking care of business when the news broke of the World Trade Center tragedy.
I quickly went to the ship’s wardroom and turned on the television where several other officers and I stood in disbelief what we were seeing; live on the screen was the first WTC tower burning and a few minutes later tower number two was crashed into. Somewhere among the events of that morning, I went topside to the ship’s bridge wing so that I could get cellular phone service in order to call my wife, Lisa, who was in Pensacola. I needed to let her know what was going on because at that time of day she is not normally watching the news.
As we spoke on the telephone, she turned on the TV and started crying because neither of us knew just what was to become of the plane crashes which later never seemed to stop coming. Nobody knew where the next crash would occur or what else might be coming.
After my short phone call to Lisa, I saw the ships that could get out of harms way begin emergency sorting, which is getting underway from the pier and heading out to sea. But the NASHVILLE was without fuel as a preparation for going into the shipyard, and was to stay behind. The crew changed focus and scrambled to take-up a more defensive posture as a matter of protection against the unknown. Machine guns were mounted and staffed and the mood for everyone was very tense.
Later that morning, I learned that the Pentagon had been crashed into and I wondered about one of my shipmates who had recently transferred from the NASHVILLE and was stationed there. Lieutenant David Williams was on duty that morning and was killed during the Pentagon attack. He left behind a child and a pregnant wife.
Yes, the morning of September 11, 2001 is a vivid memory and when we all reflect on this day we should remember all who lost their lives that day and the families that remain behind.

Tracy

I was at home that morning and as usual didn’t turn on the TV. About 10:00, got dressed and went to return some videos to Movie Gallery in Cantonment. I was listening to the radio and barely heard something about a plane hitting something. When I got the Movie Gallery I asked the clerk about it. She said that a plane had hit the World Trade Center. We talked and speculated that it must have been a small plane (again). So on the way home I really didn’t think anything about it. They had said anymore on the radio about it. When I got home, I turned on the TV and witnessed the horror of it. I was in shock. I just sat there for probably 30 minutes watching. I didn’t turn the TV off the rest of the day or night. PRAY FOR THE FAMILIES OF THE TRAGEDY! AND REMEMBER “LET’S ROLL!”

teacher

I was teaching my class when a fellow teacher came to my room and told me “a plane just hit one of the towers of the world trade center, turn on your tv.” I turned on my tv to witness the 2nd plane. I prayed because I knew this was not an accident we now were under attack. God Bless America.

Tina Hartman

I’m Active duty Air Force and we were working 14 hour shifts playing war. We actually started the night before at about 10pm and were waiting for our replacements to come and we were told the exercise was over. A bus came to pick us up and took us back to our squadron where we were briefed what was happening. The base was on lock down so we were not allowed to leave. I was awake for about 48 hours before we were actually allowed to go home.

Kim

I was at home babysitting watching Good Morning America when they broke in telling about what had happened. At that time they were confused as to what was happening. I just sat there in shock watching the television . My husband was working the night shift and had just went to bed . When I realized what was happening I walked to the bedroom and woke him up to tell him the shocking news. I remember being afraid, part of me wanted to go to the school and get my children and bring them home with me . The secure feeling I’d always had was all of a sudden gone!! I’ll never forget that day!!!!!!

Elizabeth

I was working at Whitney bank when it was open in Century. One of my co-workers had gotten to work just before me. As soon as she turned off the alarm and we all came in, she said, “Did y’all hear about the airplane hitting the World Trade Center?” I looked at her like she was nuts and I asked her with a giggle, “What? Did the pilot not see that gigantic building or something? How do you hit something as big as that?” Soon we heard about the second plane and another co-worker went and got a little 13″ TV and we watched the rest of the day unfold. It was so somber that day. People came in not saying much. They’d watch the reports on TV with us for a few minutes and just shake their heads.

Remember how we all banded together in the months following?

Mark

I was still living just north of memphis ,TN. I had just finished working the night shift at Coors brewing company running the warehouse. I dropped a friend amy off at her house and went to mine. She called me as I walked in my door to tell me about the first plane. As we talked on the phone watching everything on tv the second plane hit. She asked to come over and we spent the day watching tv wondering what was going to happen next. Was good to have a good friend around at that time.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News