Thanks for writing this today. I was driving to my office downtown that morning after the first plane had just hit and the car radio newscaster still thought it might be an accident. By the time I parked in the McClellan St ramp (also gone now), and walked across the skywalk to my office, the tv news had figured out it was no accident. The second plane had hit while I was walking in. We spent the day huddled around a 13” screen on the TV/VCR combo in the conference room watching in pure horror. Half of us were crying for people we didn’t know. No work got done. The rest of that day and the few days that followed were a blur of disbelief, heartbreaking scenes and endless news broadcasts. I was 31 at the time. The memory is vivid but at the same time it seems like a different lifetime. People who didn’t live it will learn about it, but they will never really understand. In the months that followed, America was united. United We Stand merchandise filled the stores and we bought it. Companies sold items where proceeds went to the 9/11 fund. I remember buying two special beanie babies at Janke’s. A police dog and a fire dog with names like Courage and Rescue. The rest of the year was a mixture of sadness, anger, pride and unity we haven’t seen since.
Thank you for sharing that, Lisa. I agree - those who didn’t live through it, didn’t watch it happen in real time like we did - can’t truly understand the moment, and the unity we had afterward for some time.
I remember working at Creative Communication & Design on 911 when Dave Coulthurst stepped away from his computer and announced, “the Pentagon has been hit.” The mood quickly changed around the office as we realized that the events unfolding in real time were not accidental but very intentional. Creative is also gone from that Stewart Avenue building.
Great point. I slept through that part — memory fails me in terms of certainty, but I don’t think I was watching long before the second plane hit. I recall the feeling like it was a movie but somehow in real life. A stronger version of the feeling I had when I was a kid and the Wausau TV news people were talking about “Rambo” in Rib Mountain - that’s a whole other story for another day.
I've been following that account on X, and have been reading many of the stories of the people involved that horrific day. I was in NY a year after 9/11. I was pregnant at the time. My cousin and I were visiting our cousin. She lived in upper Manhattan at that time and worked many blocks from the towers. She watched people running from her office window. We went to visit Ground Zero. It was surrounded with chain link fencing. Bulldozers were working. A group of tourists were walking around, snapping pictures, and laughing. It was upsetting to hear that while we were gaping in awe and shock and sadness of the horror before us. So surreal. Several years later, right before the museum opened, we visited again, and I was able to find my friend's friend memorial. She was on either the Pentagon flight or the one that crashed in Pennsylvania. Young women with her life after collage just beginning.
Thanks for writing this today. I was driving to my office downtown that morning after the first plane had just hit and the car radio newscaster still thought it might be an accident. By the time I parked in the McClellan St ramp (also gone now), and walked across the skywalk to my office, the tv news had figured out it was no accident. The second plane had hit while I was walking in. We spent the day huddled around a 13” screen on the TV/VCR combo in the conference room watching in pure horror. Half of us were crying for people we didn’t know. No work got done. The rest of that day and the few days that followed were a blur of disbelief, heartbreaking scenes and endless news broadcasts. I was 31 at the time. The memory is vivid but at the same time it seems like a different lifetime. People who didn’t live it will learn about it, but they will never really understand. In the months that followed, America was united. United We Stand merchandise filled the stores and we bought it. Companies sold items where proceeds went to the 9/11 fund. I remember buying two special beanie babies at Janke’s. A police dog and a fire dog with names like Courage and Rescue. The rest of the year was a mixture of sadness, anger, pride and unity we haven’t seen since.
Thank you for sharing that, Lisa. I agree - those who didn’t live through it, didn’t watch it happen in real time like we did - can’t truly understand the moment, and the unity we had afterward for some time.
I remember working at Creative Communication & Design on 911 when Dave Coulthurst stepped away from his computer and announced, “the Pentagon has been hit.” The mood quickly changed around the office as we realized that the events unfolding in real time were not accidental but very intentional. Creative is also gone from that Stewart Avenue building.
Great point. I slept through that part — memory fails me in terms of certainty, but I don’t think I was watching long before the second plane hit. I recall the feeling like it was a movie but somehow in real life. A stronger version of the feeling I had when I was a kid and the Wausau TV news people were talking about “Rambo” in Rib Mountain - that’s a whole other story for another day.
I've been following that account on X, and have been reading many of the stories of the people involved that horrific day. I was in NY a year after 9/11. I was pregnant at the time. My cousin and I were visiting our cousin. She lived in upper Manhattan at that time and worked many blocks from the towers. She watched people running from her office window. We went to visit Ground Zero. It was surrounded with chain link fencing. Bulldozers were working. A group of tourists were walking around, snapping pictures, and laughing. It was upsetting to hear that while we were gaping in awe and shock and sadness of the horror before us. So surreal. Several years later, right before the museum opened, we visited again, and I was able to find my friend's friend memorial. She was on either the Pentagon flight or the one that crashed in Pennsylvania. Young women with her life after collage just beginning.
Thank you for sharing that. I think it was good to have some reflection on that day, on the 25th anniversary.
Thank you for sharing your story William! I think we’ll all remember where we were that day, and what we felt.