Like all Americans I was shocked and saddened by the events of September 11. And like most Americans I immediately answered the call for help by donating blood and contributing to the relief effort. But more importantly September 11 emboldened by conviction that we live in the greatest country in the world and that while our buildings and airplanes would fall and our citizens would be murdered, our spirit would never be broken.
I had the opportunity during the week of October 22 to see Ground Zero. My work took me to N.Y. and for two days I worked from the 34th floor of a federal building overlooking parts of where the Twin Towers used to stand. I saw first hand the devastation and the constant smoke from the still burning fires...the longest fires to ever burn in the city of New York. I visited the Duane Street Fire Station just a block away from my work. This was one of the first stations that responded to the tragedy. Twenty-four of their firefighters lost their lives trying to save others. The station is a virtual memorial to these heroes and a special fund for their families has been established. I talked to colleagues from New York that witnessed the attack on the World Trade Center. Their lives will never be the same but they are the lucky ones. Each day the New York Times publishes a special section titled "A Nation Challenged" and in it are the pictures and stories of many of the victims. They were people like you and I who took their kids to school that morning then went on to work. But unlike us, they never made it home again.
So why do I want to get involved in this event? Because we can never forget what happened to our country on September 11, 2001 and because there are families that are counting on us to help them go on with their lives. We can only imagine their sorrow but if our contributions can help them in any way, we have made a difference.
Finally, we must support and pray for our troops fighting in Afghanistan. They are defending our freedom and our way of life. Once again we have shown the world that America is truly the land of the free and the home of the brave. We are united in our resolve and convinced that we will triumph. We owe it to the heroes of September 11 and to the memory of all those that perished in this attack on America. To them we say, We Will Never Forget.
