9/11 Tribute

The 2,993 confirmed victims of September 11th 2001 included innocent victims from 87 countries. The youngest victim was 2 year old Christie Hanson - The oldest victim was 85 year old Robert Grant Norton. 3,251 children lost a Parent on that day... The New York City Fire Department lost 343 firefighters, almost half the number of on-duty deaths in the department's 100-year history. 1,337 vehicles were crushed when the towers collapsed, including 91 FDNY vehicles - a little more than half of all the fire vehicles in Louisville. The fires at Ground Zero burned for 99 days, until Dec. 19.1.5 million working hours during 261 days were spent removing the debris at the WTC site.

The Innocent Voices of 9-11...

Flight 93 flight attendant Ceecee Lyles, 33 years old, in an answering-machine message to her husband: "Please tell my children that I love them very much. I'm sorry, baby. I wish I could see your face again."
Capt. Walter Hynes of the New York Fire Department's Ladder 13 dialed home that morning as his rig left the firehouse at 85th Street and Lexington Avenue. He was on his way downtown, he said in his message, "I don't know if we'll make it out. I want to tell you that I love you and I love the kids."
When Elizabeth Rivas husband left for the World Trade Center that morning, she went to a Laundromat, where she heard the news. She couldn't reach him by cell and rushed home. He'd called at 9:02 and reached her daughter. The child reported, "He say, mommy, he say he love you no matter what happens, he loves you." He never called again. Mrs. Rivas later said, "He tried to call me. He called me."
Peter Hanson, a passenger on United Airlines Flight 175 called his father. "I think they intend to go to Chicago or someplace and fly into a building," he said. "Don't worry, Dad - if it happens, it will be very fast."
On the same flight, Brian Sweeney called his wife, got the answering machine, and told her they'd been hijacked. "Hopefully I'll talk to you again, but if not, have a good life. I know I'll see you again some day."
There was Tom Burnett's famous call from United Flight 93. "We're all going to die, but three of us are going to do something," he told his wife, Deena. "I love you, honey."
Todd Beamer of United 93 wound up praying on the phone with a woman he'd never met before, a Verizon Airfone supervisor named Lisa Jefferson. She said later that his tone was calm. It seemed as if they were "old friends," she later wrote. They said the Lord's Prayer together. Then he said "Let's roll."
38 year old Lauren Grandcolas (3 months pregnant, with her first child) called her husband of 10 years from United 93 and left this message. "Jack, pick up, Sweetie," Lauren said on the voicemail. "I'm OK. I just wanted to tell you I love you. There's a little problem on the plane. I'm totally fine for now. I … I'll … I love you more than anything. Just know that. Please tell my family I love them too."
Melissa Harrington Hughes, a 31-year-old San Franciscan who was attending a conference on the 101st floor of the World Trade Centre when the first plane hit, reverberated around the world. Trapped on a higher floor, called her father to say she loved him. Minutes later she left a message on the answering machine as her new husband slept in their San Francisco home. The message she left was heard by millions: "Sean, it's me. I just wanted to let you know I love you and I am stuck in this building in New York. A plane hit, or a bomb went off - we don't know. But there's a lot of smoke and I just wanted you to know I love you."
Some quotes and content from above used from Peggy Noonan's Wall Street Journal Editorial page from 9/8/06.

Do you Remember where you were on 9-11-01?

I was asleep when Carlos called me and told me. I didn't believe him. I turned on the T.V and couldn't believe what I was seeing. Lil Carlos was 4 alsmost 5 and he sat with me watching t.v. I explained to him about the bad people on the planes and all the mom's and dad's in the building and on the plane. It was so sad we both sat there and cried. Carlos was working at Auto Zone and I was attending Education of America for Computer Networking. School closed that day so that everyone could be with their family. I remember how scared everyone felt waiting to see if there were going to be any more attacks. I remember after, strangers coming together and helping one an other... and how patriotic everyone felt.

I am thankful to live in America and enjoy all the freedoms that we have. I am thankful for the soldiers. I am thankful to all the FireFighters, Police, Doctors and the many others who helped out on that terrible day.