1
20
204
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Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I was at work at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, in my office in the Colvard North building. I walked into the break room to get some coffee and someone told me to watch what was happening on television. I had no idea what had happened. First I thought it was an accident. I watched the TV and the CNN website for most of the day. The Atkins Library staff rolled televisions on carts out into the library, and students in the library likewise watched television all day.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
Sadness. Disbelief. Watching all the people streaming out of New York across the bridges, on foot. Watching the towers fall down. And then, after we received word that something had happened at the Congress or at the Pentagon, wondering if we still had a government.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
We realized that life is uncertain and we can't take it for granted or waste it. We're a lot more suspicious and less trusting.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story242.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
anonymously
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
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born-digital
Media Type
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story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2004-01-12
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
24.74.70.176
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
In my office in Washington DC. Just came into work and the news of the first plane was on the TV. At first I refused to believe it all was on purpose. After we saw another plane hit and heard of another plane headed towards the Capitol...we all bolted for the door and headed to a coworkers home. People were running straight down the street in every direction...as long as it was away from the Capitol Building. On the way to the house, I heard what I thought was another plane hitting the Capitol...I ran back to see for myself and saw it was ok...but the thought of that happening was terrifying. Later I heard it was either a supersonic boom from a fighter overhead or a secondary explosion at the Pentagon. We all watched TV together at my coworkers house. No one's cell phones worked and the land lines were down. The hours watching the tragedy seemed to speed by.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
Eventually getting home and my phone beginning to work again. My voicemail box was full and I heard from people I hadn't heard from in years, all hoping I was ok. It was an intense feeling knowing so many people were so frightened for our well being.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
It has made us more aware of our place in the world community. We aren't as safe as we once believed and it is important that we recognize that and deal with it accordingly.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story196.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2004-01-05
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
165.224.215.3
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
Sept. 11, 2001
I was working in a store when a customer walked in and asked if we heard about the planes crashing into the World Trade Center in New York City. The restaurant next door had a TV so I walked over to watch the mayhem. I'm a New Yorker, born and raised in Brooklyn. I moved to Maryland when I got married in 1969. Once a New Yorker always a New Yorker. It's in your blood. I went back to the shop and unfortunately it was business as usual. BUSINESS AS USUAL!! Were they nuts. MY New York was being attacked.
My cousin works in New York and he saw the planes hit the towers. He knew immediately it was not an accident, but an assult because of the way the planes deliberately crashed into the buildings. He saw the people jump from the towers. He said the press was very conservative with their coverage of the jumpers. Thank God. Martin (my cousin) had to walk home from downtown Manhattan, across the Brooklyn Bridge to Maspeth, Queens.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
My strongest memory of that day was my boss' attitude that it was business as usual. The whole world was changing before our eyes. How could anything ever be "usual" again.
I lost my 22 year old son, Patrick, in a road rage incident on June 23, 2000. I could relate with the people who lost loved ones on 911. I felt their pain, anger and grief.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
I think Americans turned to a higher power for comfort. I'm a Catholic so it reaffirmed my belief that things of this world are only temporary and God has plans we do not forsee. Free will controls our actions, be it good or evil and God does not interfere. I hoped that the highjackers were in Hell with the devil.
I still visit New York and my family. I still ride the subways and walk the streets of Manhattan. That will never change. I love New York and the strength and courage of the people living and working in the city. I think 911 took away our sense of security. The United States was vulnerable.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story164.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2003-12-22
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
68.49.64.168
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I was at my house in Charleston,IL when I heard the news. I immeadily remembered my friends sister was in NEW YORK. I was really sad.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
My memory was my grandfather fighting.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
Ifeel that we should stand up to this nonsence from Iraq!!!
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story111.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2003-12-17
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
216.176.72.196
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
In my office, about 4 miles south of the Pentagon. A call came in to tell me about the first tower. My window faces the Pentagon, and while it is blocked from my view, a colleague and I saw the sunlight hit the wing of the plane that hit the Pentagon as it banked sharply down and then disappeared from view. A second or to later we heard a muffled blast and saw the smoke. We closed the office.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
Wanting to see my wife and daughters. Waiting to hear that my brother and neice (who work and go to school in NY) were ok. As a native New Yorker I was shocked as the Towers came down, and felt helpless being in Maryland.
Concern for all the innocent victims and their heroes. Fearful of the jingoism which would result.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
I think it has affected the country adversley. While a devastating event, America's swift and brutal response has accomplished little. But it did give the current administration the rationale it was looking for to "relive" the 'good old days'. Rumsfeld , Ashcroft, et al, have a replaced their longing for a cold war with this cause, and I believe that this will not serve in the best long term interest of the US either home or abroad.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story9.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2003-02-14
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
152.163.194.178
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I was at a customer's house doing house cleaning. It was getting near time for "The Price is Right," so I turned on the television. At first I thought it was just a terrible accident, then the pictures flashed from the burning towers to the Pentagon building. The faces of the newsmen were grim and their voices sounded sluggish and exhausted. The word that stood out was "attack." Suddenly I felt very nervous and afraid. I just wanted to get my babies and go home where it was 'safe.'
Then I saw the buildings collaspe. I finished my cleaning job (very quickly and totally in a trance). What was going on outside? Were my children safe? My mind just kept screaming at me to get home.
Once I got to the school, the staff was on full security alert. That made me even more nervous. I'd never had to show identification to sign my children out of school. Parents were arriving in droves to pick up their children. I couldn't speak. My children wanted to know why they were getting out early. All I could say was 'some crazy people flew airplanes into buildings and killed a lot of innocent people.'
I couldn't stop watching the television. I didn't want to, but something just pulled me to find out what happened. I believed in my heart that they would find many people alive in the lower levels of the buildings. I just knew that people were going to come out of that basement, with the help of the rescue squads. Despite the fires, the devastation... I held out hope and prayed that hundreds would be found in those lower levels...
My brother works in DC and one of my sisters travels alot on her job. We called around until we knew everyone was safe.
I wanted to cry, but I didn't want to upset my boys. I wanted to scream. I wanted it all to be a nightmare that I would wake up from.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
My strongest memory was the feeling that 'the home of the free and the brave' had been betrayed. I remember how I suddenly felt so insecure. How could my country allow this to happen? We are supposed to be the strongest, the most sophisticated country in the world. How come no one knew? How come this was not prevented. The images of those towers falling haunt me to this day. I cannot look at pictures of them without imagining the terror those trapped inside must have felt. And to have them come down like that...I often (still after all this time), wonder if they knew. What about the ones that were almost out? They were crushed when they were so close to getting back home to their loved ones. It haunts me still and it hurts...So many families devastated, so many promising lives lost.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
While taking a health class earlier this year, I was relieved to know that I'm not the only one in the world who feels the anxiety that I do. I look at tall buildings and imagine a 110 ft building coming down. I see airplanes flying low and become afraid. I started having anxiety attacks. I have no faith in the security of this country. I didn't want the terrorist to win, but they did - by taking away my sense of security in my own homeland. I spend a lot of time with my children. I'm actually afraid to go into a tall building and I will never fly again unless I'm in a casket.
I've seen nothing the US has done to make me feel better. Police departments (i.e., the Park Police, border patrol, etc.) are understaffed, low on resources, funding, etc., Everytime a new law is enacted to better secure the country, some legal rights group comes along and says, "hey, that ain't fair - you're stepping on peoples rights." Meanwhile the border police are understaffed and can't stop the flow of people coming in (a great way for terrorist to just jump a fence and make themselves at home)to plan another worst attack.
I think people in this country, despite the flag waving and USA chants are more on edge. They seem to be more 'every man for himself' than ever before. They seem to be more aggitated. They are feeling insecure, maybe angry... I don't feel we have the brotherhood that we should. An event like this should have bought us closer together. It seems to have separated us further. Everyone in their own little world.. everyone collecting their water bottles, building their safety bunkers, hoarding duct tape - waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Not finding Bin Laden after all this time? Again, my confidence in the leadership of this country is at its' lowest point ever.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story146.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2003-12-19
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
67.74.224.155
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I was in my Elizabeth, NJ first grade classroom. I received several calls over the intercom that "so and so" is going home but, to wait for security to come and get them....do NOT allow them to come to the office on their own. It was very strange. This kept up. Finally, my neighbor opened the foor and told me what happened....but not to tell the kids. I remember feeling numb...trying to be normal but, dying inside. By noon, I had 2 students left and it hit me that my brother works three blocks from WTC. Cell phone not working. Mom called school at 2 to tell me he's fine.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
Going home, driving on Routes 1&9 north past Newark Airport (closed at the time) and being the only car on the road. This is normally a busy, crazy driving kind of road. It felt like a ghost town. Passing the airport, you could see the smoke from Manhattan in the background. I cried the whole ride home.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
Personally, I keep in touch much more with my family. I almost lost a brother that day. I hadn't spoken to him in weeks because we were both busy. I also feel particularly close with the students I had that year.
The country always seems to be on edge....especially NYC now. National Guard at the ferries, tunnels, etc.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story248.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2004-01-13
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
67.80.129.85
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I was at work as a librarian in the Cataloging Department at Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis. A colleague who listened to the radio on a walkman gave us the news of the first plane's hitting the WTC. I assumed it was an accident. Then my colleague told us that a second plane had been flown into the towers and we all knew it had to be deliberate. I heard about the Pentagon the same way. By this time I had tried and failed to get into any U.S. internet news site, including all the Indianapolis television stations and the newspaper. The BBC website was also inaccessible from the volume of traffic. Finally I realized that it would be late night in Australia, so I tried and got into the Australian Broadcasting site. They didn't have much detail.
By this time my email had begun coming in fast from friends all over the U.S and the world. There was much checking on friends in NYC and DC. I was especially worried about two friends who work for the Smithsonian, as if there was a fourth plane crashed into Washington, the target would probably be near them. Fortunately they both were safe.
Being a seminary, CTS held a prayer service in the chapel. I am proud to say that when the congregation was asked for individual intercessions, someone promptly prayed for the safety of Arabs, Arab-Americans and Muslims who would be in danger of being attacked by revenge-seekers.
I didn't see the famous tape of the plane hitting the towers until after I got home, about 4:30 pm. and turned on CNN.
I felt a great sorrow for a long time afterwards, but not anger. What was done to us that day was beyond anger.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
E-mailing and being e-mailed from all over. I am the policy setting listowner for Forkni-l@lists.psu.edu and Fkfic-l@lists.psu.edu, both focused on the television show Forever Knight. Normally I am very strict about staying on topic and not allowing anything but fanfic on Fkfic-l. Now that all went by the board as the fandom reached out to each other. I made a point of saying on both lists that I was not going to enforce the topicality rules, that we were a family who needed to comfort each other. This occured on other e-mail lists, but as the listowner of these two I was in the middle of the comraderie. We didn't know it at the time, but we had a member whose husband, a New York Port Authority police officer, just missed being inside when the second tower collapsed. Another member who worked in the Pentagon barely made it out safely. I only had to intervene twice in unsuitable threads. The first was when someone who meant well but hadn't thought of the inflamatory effect tried to start a discussion of the attacks in relation to U.S. support for Israel. This was quickly withdrawn, with an apology, at my request not to discuss the political aspects of the situation. The second was someone who insisted on posting an anti-Arab diatribe on Fkfic-l. He refused to promise not to do it again and I removed him from the mailing list.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
I think we are much more security conscious, but unfortunately I think the public mood has become frighteningly militaristic and authoritatarian.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story185.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2004-01-02
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
67.29.208.184
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
BAY SHORE MIDDLE SCHOOL
Wednesday September 11, 2002
1st Anniversary of the Attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon
SEPTEMBER 11TH REMEMBRANCE
Kenneth Summers, a Brightwaters resident, spoke at an emotional remembrance service at Bay Shore Middle School on September 11, 2002. Ken is among the more fortunate individuals who were at work at the World Trade Center that fateful day. He was severely burned that day but is alive and able to tell his story. We are grateful to Ken for sharing his emotional story.
Good morning! Over the last 200 years our country has suffered many tragedies. In 1836 there were cries to Remember the Alamo. In 1898 it was Remember the Maine. In 1941 Remember Pearl Harbor. I dont think that there is a person from my generation in this audience who doesnt recall where they were on November 22nd, 1963 when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. I know where I was. I was an eight grader, much like yourselves, when the announcement came over the loudspeaker at school. The world was devastated by the news. An entire nation was despondent and many people thought that this was the end of our nation.
But they were wrong.
As a nation we persevered and prospered. We went on to fight a war in Vietnam that almost divided our country. Yet despite this and the loss of over 58,000 men and women, we continued to hold our heads high. We valued our freedom and democracy above all else and as a nation we pledged to protect the weak and defenseless from the tyrants who threatened to take that all away.
On the morning of September 11th I caught my usual 5:30am train from Bay Shore that got me to the World Trade Center at about 7:10am. I immediately went up to my office of Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield that was located on the south side of the 27th floor in One World Trade Center (the north tower). At about 8:45am I left my office to go to the post office. After stepping out of the elevator in the lobby, I passed through the security turnstiles, the inner glass push doors and then out through the revolving glass door of the west entrance to WTC I. This brought me out under the glass-covered overhang where the taxis and cars drew up off of West Street. As I was in the revolving door going outside I heard a loud rumble that sounded more like an empty 18-wheel truck slamming on its brakes and skidding to a stop than it did an explosion. I had no idea at the time that anything was happening to the building. There was no indication of smoke, flame or the smell of fuel.
I had walked no more than 10 feet Out of the revolving door when I looked to my left and saw a co-worker of mine running north along the west side of WTC 1. He was ducking down while he ran and used his hand to indicate to me that I should look up. I did and saw numerous items coming down from the upper floors of the building. I remember thinking that a bomb had probably gone off in the upper floors. Not spending more than a second to evaluate the situation, I ran back to the revolving doors to get back into the building to avoid being hit be any falling debris, Immediately after entering the revolving door I seemed to notice a discoloration of the air of the lobby. I had but a split second when suddenly the temperature inside the door increased tremendously. I must have seen a flicker of flame for I put my hands up to my face and then the explosion followed. The glass shattered into my face and the next thing I recall was that I was lying outside near the planters in front of the revolving door. There was black smoke and flaming debris all around. I believe that the doorframe was wrapped around me. I did not notice anyone else in my vicinity but I guess I was too stunned to notice.
My hair was on fire, as was my shirt, which I quickly extinguished with my hands. I had no idea of the severity of my injuries. I knew I was severely burned, but I got myself up immediately and started to walk away from the building. I walked out onto West Street and asked everyone I saw if they could help me. I proceeded to the southwest corner of Liberty and West Street, across from WTC 2 and the Marriott Hotel and sat down on the steps. I had been sitting there about 5 minutes when I heard the increasingly louder whine of a jet engine and suddenly a loud explosion as the 2nd plane flew into WTC 2. I did not see the plane but debris and flames came out of the west side of WTC 2 directly toward where I was sitting. The crowd screamed and started running behind the World Financial building. Amazingly, I got up or was dragged by someone and ran with them.
I had run behind the World Financial building for about 50 feet, when a man named Steve Newman came up to me and offered to help me. At the same time a girl in a gray business suit asked if she could help. I told her I needed a cell phone. She had one, pushed it in front of me and asked what number I wanted to call. I gave her my wife Nadines work number at Bay Shore Middle School and I got through to her co-workers on the first try. They got my wife and I told her that I was alive, that I was severely burned but that I would make it. I told her that Steve was offering to help get me medical attention, that I loved her and that I would get back to her later from wherever I ended up. That was the single most important thing that I did that day and I was greatly relieved that I accomplished it.
Steve told me that he was the son of a doctor and that he would stay by me. He told me he felt that I was going to go into shock. My bums were painful but not terribly so as I was probably already in shock. Steve felt that the best thing for us to do was to get to New Jersey using the ferry from the World Financial Center docks. I agreed with him and we started walking toward the ferry along the Hudson River wall. As we stumbled along we came upon a fireboat tied up along the Hudson River seawall. The firemen spotted us and yelled, We Got One, and jumped off the boat to help. So far they had not seen any other injured people. The firemen brought an oxygen mask and put it over my face. I asked for water and they gave me some to swish in my mouth. They also tried to clean me up a little with a wet cloth but stopped when they realized that it might be too painful. After several minutes, I asked them if they could take us to New Jersey on the fireboat. They replied that they were ordered to stay where they were. Steve and I informed them that we then must get to the ferry. They protested but wished us good luck.
Steve and I, accompanied by a fireman from the fireboat, proceeded to walk north on the Hudson promenade toward the marina. I recalled looking at my building and hearing what I thought was an explosion. I saw a cloud of debris going past my building. To me, I thought it was another explosion and I yelled to Steve that they were trying to bring WTC 1 down by exploding another bomb in the underground parking area. Unknown to me, the roar I was hearing was the collapse of WTC 2 which I could not see since the building of the World Financial Center blocked my view. I recall that the crowd parted like the Red Sea when they saw us approaching the ferry. There were thousands of people trying to escape Manhattan and still everyone cleared the way. There was no panic. They let us pass right up to the edge of the ferry dock. The ferry had just pulled away from the dock and when they saw me standing there, they, nosed back in and Steve and I and several other people jumped on board. The debris from the WTC 2 collapse did not reach us at all. I did not look back towards the city and was unaware that WTC 2 had collapsed. It would be two more weeks before my wife and daughter would inform me of what really happened that day.
From the ferry I was taken by ambulance to the Jersey City Medical Center. The hospital wanted to airlift me to the burn unit at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, New Jersey but all aircraft were grounded that day. Later in the evening of September 11th I was accompanied by my daughter as I was moved by ambulance to Saint Barnabas where I stayed a little over three weeks. During my stay at Saint Barnabas I underwent four skin graft operations to my hands and my arms and have been recovering at home ever since.
The events of September 11th are a tragedy of world proportions. Never before have so many people been affected by an event. It touched all of our lives whether we witnessed it first hand or overdosed on the endless replays of television and newspaper coverage. It has indeed shaken our confidence, our ability to get on an airplane, ride a subway or even go into the city. But though we suffer now, we will surely rise from the ashes. While I recovered in the hospital I was told stories of the American flags that draped the overpasses and adorned cars and homes. I recall that it was one of the greatest comforts that I experienced on my drive home from the hospital a month later. To know that I had the support of so many people gave me renewed strength to get through this ordeal. People discovered the need to offer their prayers and support, both emotionally and financially, to those of us who have suffered or lost. Organizations like the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army and the United Way, to name a few, received donations from Americans and people all over the world, in amounts that were unprecedented in our nations history.
If my own personal experiences during my recovery over the last year are any indicator of our communities strength and support then we are all well on our way to a full recovery. Since the very beginning good friends and strangers have always been there for my family and me. From the former limousine owner who snuck my wife onto the Belt Parkway to get her to my bedside at the hospital in New Jersey to the Bay Shore students who came and raked up all my leaves this past fall we have received such generous support. We have had tearful strangers with flowers appear at our front door offering their sympathies and members of my local congregation helping my wife Nadine put some order to the chaos in our lives. The casserole patrol to our home was endless. At times I felt that we would never have to cook again. As I faced a new uncertain world upon my return, there were good friends who just stopped by to talk and assure me that I was not alone in my fears. Other friends got me out of the house for a ride to the beach on a beautiful windy day, filling my heart and soul with the passion to become a part of the world again. For all of these acts my family and I will be forever grateful.
My life has changed dramatically since that day. I suppose because of my injuries that my emphasis has really been to get better again and I dont deny that this is my main objective. Things that I truly enjoyed so much in the past such has playing the piano, or golf or tennis are not available to me right now and may never fully be in the future. However, with my situation come new challenges and opportunities. Opportunities to help others like they have helped me with things just as simple as the willingness to listen as they share their pain or as complex as helping someone sell their home and move away. My family has been the recipient of so many acts of kindness during this past year and I urge you to continue this tradition to those less fortunate than yourselves. You will be amazed how great it will make you feel to offer your time and services to someone in need.
I still have a long road ahead and I anticipate at least 3 more surgeries for my hands starting with the first in October. I dont look forward to these surgeries which will most likely put me out of commission for another 6 months or more, but I do look forward to the relief from then pain they may offer and hopefully enhanced functionality for my hands. I would be a liar if I said that I was not bitter towards the people who did this, but I also accept that this is the only life I will get and that I received a second chance where many people did not. I am thankful to be alive by Gods graces and I realize that harboring hatred serves no purpose in my recovery. I want my life back and I intend to get it.
What lay ahead no one can predict. To tell you that something like this can never happen again would be untrue. However, you have seen with your own eyes the response of our nation and the world to this outrage and if any country can rise to meet this challenge it is the United States. I also realize that I cannot do everything alone and maybe you cannot do it alone either. Therefore I urge any and all of you who are still suffering in the aftermath of 9-11 to seek some help if you feel you need it. This help came come from talking with your family and/or even your friends. The professional guidance counselors here at school and other outside organizations such as Project Liberty are also there for your support. I was young once myself and I know how stubborn I was and how important it was to put on the appearance of invincibility. But when you hurt, just know that you are not alone and there is help available, so dont be embarrassed to need or accept it.
In closing, I need to stress that the only lasting thing that these cowards managed to accomplished a year ago today, was to strengthen the resolve of the American people and the world. Part of this resolve is the importance of the role that our families and friends play in our lives. Honor your family like you honor the flag of your country and there will be no enemy that can defeat you.
I want to thank the Bay Shore School District for the privilege of allowing me to speak before you this day. I would also like to express my love to my wife, family, friends and strangers for all of their understanding, love and support during this most challenging time in my life.
Thank You and God Bless America
Ken Summers
EPILOGUE JUNE 2003
I had my surgery to reconstruct my right hand in November 2002 and on my left hand in January 2003. I have greatly increased movement has a result, but FAR from perfect. I still attend Occupational Therapy 3 times a week. I returned to work in February 2003 which requires me to go into NYC at least 2 times a week which makes me rather uncomfortable but ya gotta do what ya gotta do. I have spoken many times about my experiences to individuals all over the world. To this day, they are dumbfounded that there were injured victims. This reaction amazes me, but in reality it is true, since among the 1,100 people injured that day (mostly with respiratory and ocular injuries from dust and floating debris) there were only about 40 people who were hospitalized for more than 2 days and 37 of us were burn victims of which only about 20 survived.
I have not played golf yet nor have I skied (I am 53 I started skiing when I was 3). I am starting to play the piano again with great difficulty, but it is good therapy. I found that I have a fairly decent tenor voice and thus joined my church choir which I really enjoy. I have had the opportunity to give my speech or a modified version on two other occasions. I enjoy speaking and look forward to speaking at future engagements whenever they arise. I am always well received No Pitty Thank You and I KNOW that my words have made a difference to hundreds of people, since they have told me so. I am here to help if you need me.
Today the sun is out and I am going out to enjoy it. It is great to be alive. Enjoy life!
Ken Summers
EPILOGUE OCTOBER 2003
There was an article in Newsday, a Long Island paper, entitled Two Steps Forward, One Step Back. This story detailed the routine of three of the WTC burn victims. Wow, was this story ever on the mark except that sometimes I feel that it is more like Two Steps Forward, Three Steps Back. I had my reconstructive surgery and skin grafts to my left hand on Sep 30th as anticipated. I guess my one step forward could be considered by the fact that I did not have to have surgery on my right hand yet! I can only say that I wont be swinging those golf clubs for a long while. This graft, which was supposed to be a piece of cake, was larger than my last two grafts. Hopefully the final result will be worth it. Back to OT on Monday (10/13/03). Good news is that I get a break from work for several weeks. Every cloud has a silver lining (or so they say Id like to know who they is).
Chin up!
Ken Summers
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
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lc_story85.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
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The process status of this item.
approved
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born-digital
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2003-12-16
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152.163.252.8
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Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
On September 11, I was working in my office as a school counselor in a Bronx high school. My seventh floor windows faced south looking toward lower Manhattan.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
I recall that after 9:00 a.m. I saw a plume of black smoke in the distance, but ignored it. In time it grew larger and spread across the horizon heading east with the winds. By that time, we had been infornmed by the administration of the attack and prepared the building for early dismissal. I learned of the collapse of the towers from a colleague whose husband was watching it in television. I imagined the buildings filled with many thousands of people, innocent souls, tumbling towards earth. The horror was overwhelming and unbelievable.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
My sense of a secure future, in New York especially,has been altered. There is no longer the freedom to think that we are completely safe...safety was never an issue in my life. Now I anticipate that one day in this city we will be challenged again and have to suffer the death of many people. I try to wish this thought away but I have the anxiety that it will happen. I just hope no one I know is a victim.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
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lc_story257.xml
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Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
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Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
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2004-01-15
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165.155.160.122
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Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
On September 11, 2001, I was here at my home in Danville, California. My mother, Hilda Marcin, was flying from Newark, NJ to San Francisco, CA that day and I was up early getting ready to pick her up at the airport. My mom Hilda was 79 years old (young), had retired in June, 2001 from her job as an instructional aide to special needs children. She lived and worked in Budd Lake, New Jersey. Upon her retirement, she decided she would like to try living a good part of the year with my husband Tom and I here in California. So, September 11, 2001 was her moving day. She was a passenger aboard United Flight 93. When I heard the news of the Twin Towers being hit by planes (actually saw the 2nd plane hit a little after 6 a.m. pacific time), I froze, terrified and afraid for my mom. I ran upstairs and told my husband what was happening in New York and he assured me my mother's plane was already well on its way to California. I called United and they said everything was OK and the United 93 was scheduled to land on time. All I can say is that morning was the most terrifying and horrific day of my life. I feared so for my mother's safety; I prayed, cried, and made so many phone calls I cannot even remember them all. Later that morning, my sister Betty who lives in New Jersey and took my mom to Newark Airport that morning, and I were speaking on the phone, comparing notes, wondering who to call next. We both had on the TV and were watching CNN when the news flash appeared stating "United Flight 93 bound for San Francisco from Newark crashes in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania". I get chills when I write those words. My sister and I dropped our phones and both fell to the floor crying, screaming and physically sick from the news. It was not real to us; it could not be, not our beautiful mom. My husband immediatley left work, came home, where we hugged and cried in the driveway. Shortly thereafter, neighbors stopped by, some crying, some leaving flowers and notes. My husband Tom and I then went to see our priest; even he was at a loss for words. That evening, our church had a special service and they mentioned my mom's name; I still was in shock; could not believe any of it. Then and there, the long journey began. A journey that continues today and will for the rest of my life. I am heartbroken, not just over the loss of my mom, but for all the 9/11 families I have come to know and love. What we have suffered has been at times almost too much for anyone to bear. I hope and pray it never happens again.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
My strongest memory is the coming together of people in support of others. I cannot remember much about my own pain because it was so strong, so sickening, so difficult to put words to it. I do remember the stories of heroism; people helping others get up off the ground in New York; watching it on TV, at the time not realizing how my life would be changed forever. I wanted to get to Shanksville so bad, but couldn't unless we got in the car. My husband and I waited to see how the airlines would handle us, and three days later we were on our way to Pittsburgh, and then driven to Shanksville along with the other Flight 93 families. It was the longest three days of my life; waiting to get there.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
Personally, I have been affected in many ways. I lost my dear mom, my best friend, a woman who gave to others all her life and just wanted to spend the rest of her life enjoying the time she had left. She was healthy and looking forward to her stay with us. I have never been the same since that day. I have not flown much, only when necessary, and then I take tranquilizers. Every time I get on a plane, I visualize what happened on Flight 93 and how the passengers and crew members may have been acting/reacting. It's frightening and it haunts me. I have become involved in the FLight 93 Memorial process; am on the Task Force as Co-Chair of the Government Relations Committee; I write the Flight 93 Family Newsletter monthly for all the families. I am totally engulfed in something I would have never dreamed in a thousand years to be a part of; I sometimes have to remember that there were only 40 people on that plane -- what are the odds one of them would be my mom?
The country has been affected dramatically as well, but I think most people have moved on with their lives since then. If you live in the West as I do, people were never as affected emotionally as in the East. It's just too far removed from their everyday lives. There are some of us in the West who where directly affected, but not like the numbers in the NY area. The isolation of that hasn't helped us much, but yet I do understand from my friends and family in the East that sometimes it is overwhelming for them being in the news constantly. I think people generally are more cautious now though, especially about flying. I think fliers are more aware of their surroundings and have accepted the security changes as a vital part of life. I know when I fly I look at everyone on the plane to see if they look suspicious in any way and like the passengers and crew on Flight 93; I would be ready for a good fight if necessary. The country has become more patriotic especially since our young men and women have been sent to Iraq and Afghanistan. I support them 100% as does most of the country. I just feel so, so bad for all the 9/11 families; it's been a tough road for most and will continue to be forever. All the children left without parents; we still don't know the long term psychological affects. I can speak for myself though and say without question that I am a changed person; will never be the same again. I only hope to find peace and answers in the coming years.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
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911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
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approved
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2003-12-17
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63.80.232.194
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Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I was at home on Sept. 11, and heard about the attacks on the radio. I then went downstairs and watched TV. It was truly shocking to see before your eyes events taking place that you never believed could happen. My wife called me on the phone to see if I was watching. Later I signed on to the Internet, and I called or wrote notes to some of my friends.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
I'm afraid my strongest reaction, like that of so many others, is watching the tower fall from the sky. That and to hear spokesmen on the scene speculate about the number of dead. It was amazing and truly sad.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
That's a much more difficult question. Sadness obviously, at the sheer number of innocent people who were killed for no reason. Anger, of course, at the Middle Eastern people who had been behind it. But so much more. A more probing mind about what it is about this country that would lead someone to do this. Are we somehow responsible? Is it oil? The clash of religous beliefs? Are we living so well in our country in part by taking advantage of people in these other nations? Are the people who did this to us just a small fraction of Muslims, or do they represent a large and growing subsgroup within Islam? What do they seek, ultimately - merely for non-Muslims to leave their countries, or is their ultimate goal to take over?
There are so many versions of Islam, and within the Middle East the more moderate ones are always trying to suppress the growing right wing minority. But it is hard for someone living in the United States to get a firm handle on which things claimed by Muslims are true and which are just bizarre.
This truly leaves me asking questions, probing answers to try them out and see how they fit.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
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Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
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2003-02-18
IP Address
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152.163.189.166
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Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I was working for NC Division of Emergency Management in Raleigh, NC. I was at my desk, but did not have my radio on. I happened to check my e-mail on a Web-based e-mail site, and a friend had sent an e-mail about a plane striking one of the WTC buildings. I was thinking "Cessna" or similar small aircraft, and thought how tragic for the pilot, passengers, and those in the area where the plane would have hit.
But then, I couldn't get any news Web sites to come up. So I went to the break room, where the TV is, to see what was up...only to find just about everyone else already there. That's when my heart dropped and I knew that this was BIG.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
My cousin was modelling for a NYC firm, and had been going up there, some. I knew my parents were safely in the Pacific NW, so the first person I called was my Aunt, to make sure my cousin was NOT in New York, but safely at home in NC. I was thankful to hear that she was.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
I think 9/11/01 made America aware of a lot of things: our vulnerability, our need to remember who we are as a nation, the sense of community+country that had been lost in commercialism and daily life. Don't get me wrong, I'm almost as conservative as they come, and I am not criticizing capitalism. I'm criticizing the mentality of getting, of coveting...which ruins lives and isolates people from one another. I think 9/11 brought this country back from the brink...and we must stay back from it, and CONTINUE to realize how blessed we are. I think that day brought many truth-seekers "out of the closet" and closer to knowing God, His graciousness and providence, and His plan for salvation and life.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
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A name given to the resource
lc_story219.xml
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Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
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The process status of this item.
approved
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Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
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Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
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2004-01-07
IP Address
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149.168.21.41
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Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I was in college, but my classes were cancelled because a professor was going to be out of town. I had a dentist appointment, so I turned the radio on while driving. I was absolutely shocked! I could not fathom that this was actuallly taking place in New York. When I arrived, the dentist took me immediately to one of the rooms and I watched the television. The dental hygenist was encouraging me to floss more as the second tower fell. I felt strange as I watched the television and sat in the dentist chair.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
Honestly, the following year, I was student teaching at Vine Grove Elementary, here in Kentucky. We went out to flag pole and recited the Pledge as a school. I could hardly get through the words. One of the adults sang the "Star Spangled Banner." I was surprised that more of the children didn't show signs of any emotion, but I realized that for the most part they were not allowed to watch the events as they happened. I often wonder how this will effect their generation.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
I did not know anyone personally who was actually invovled in the situation, but I am very sensitive to stories I hear about the people who lost their lives. I was in New York City over the holiday and I was listening to someone talk about how New Yorkers could go to grocery stores and purchase items to help the relief workers. The story was not especially touching, but the thought of the day always ends up bringing tears to my eyes.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story267.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2004-01-20
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
205.204.242.22
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
On September 11, 2001, I was a public school Librarian at Bath County High School, a small, rural school in Hot Springs, Virginia. At the time I learned of the events, Mrs. Noreen Mitchell had just brought her second period eighth grade English class to the library to research Greek mythology. The time was probably a little after nine in the morning. The Art teacher, Mr. Bill Lindsey, came into the library to say that a plane had struck the World Trade Center and one of the towers was on fire. The Pentagon had been struck, too, by that point. I had a small audio-visual room with a TV and cable, and so we went into the room and turned on CNN. Soon, other teachers began showing up in the library, and Mrs. Mitchell was having a difficult time keeping her students on task. Finally, she gave up, and we all crowded into this tiny room while others stood in the doorway and looked over people's shoulders. Teachers began coming to the library to ask if they could bring their whole classes to the library to watch. Finally, I connected the cable to the closed-circuit televisions provided by Channel One so that every class could watch the news in their own rooms. I remember that as events unfolded, a paranoia began to take hold, not just in my school but on TV and among news anchors and commentators. There were reports of other planes still in the air. The President's location was unknown for a lengthy period of time. There was a report that a plane was headed for the Capitol, or perhaps the White House. All the kids were wondering if school would be released early and perhaps cancelled the next day. Once it became common knowledge that the events of that day were acts of terrorism, immediately the adults in the school began to talk of war, though against whom no one could say. School remained in session, though no learning took place outside the context of what was happening in New York and Washington. Much of the day, Mr. Lindsey and I watched the news together and talked. I was only about 28 at the time; Mr. Lindsey was in his fifties, so he had a more experienced and liberal mind than myself. I was gung ho and ready to go to war; I was fearful and excited. He was sad and afraid. That night, my wife and I went home (she was a French teacher in the same school where I worked) and listened to NPR. We did not have cable TV at home. Around nine, the President addressed the nation. We listened to it with a mixed feeling of fear and excitement. Nothing feels as exhilerating and as terrible as living in a great moment of history.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
My most vivid memory of the day is how the Internet went down due to the sudden surge in traffic. Google simply posted a message directing people to major news sites, but these sites were either unavailable or not updated for long periods of time. The inability to get information on-line contributed to a sense that we were in the beginning stages of some kind of apocalypse. The overwhelming feeling of that day was of uncertainty and fear of the future.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
As for myself personally, previous to September 11, I expected to live out my existence in rural Appalachian Virginia. My wife and I had just had our first child in April 2001, and we were looking for a home to buy. By January 2002, we were both actively seeking new jobs and by extension, a different life for ourselves. I briefly looked into joining the Marine corps. and going to Officer Candidate School. I went so far as to talk to a local recruiter, as well as my brother-in-law, who was also a recruiter for the Marines. I had scheduled an appointment to take the entrance exam when I finally decided that joining the military at my age and my stage in life would be too difficult for my family. My wife didn't want me to do it, but was willing to support me; however, I decided it was too much to ask of her. Instead, I began to look for work elsewhere, as did my wife. She eventually found a job teaching French in a High School in nearby Lexington, Virginia. It took a little longer for me to find work, but by July, I was offered and accepted a position with the Library of Congress as part of the Digital Conversion group. I feel like 9/11 directly precipitated these changes in our life. I don't know why, but after 9/11 we both felt that we could not go on as before. We were not fully satisfied with our then-current jobs, but we were resigned to working in that school for the rest of our working lives because it was comfortable and we had the rare benefit of being able to work together on the same schedule. 9/11 caused us to reevaluate who we were and where we were going, and because of that, we decided that we needed more. We were not going to resign ourselves to a work environment we really didn't like, in a part of the country so remote that we had to drive forty minutes over a mountain just to reach a solitary Wal-Mart in a dead-end mill town (Covington, Virginia). I did not join the Marines, but I moved on to better things, and my wife and I are happier now. On a national level, my assessment of how 9/11 has changed the country has drifted from the conservative position I took for some time after 9/11. I think that fifty years from now, historians will say that the terrorists won a surreptitious victory on September 11, 2001. At the time, the President and others told us that we would not accede to the terrorists demands and desires. We were told that the terrorists wanted us to be afraid, that the terrorists wanted us to alter our lives, take away our own freedoms, react hastily and violently. And yet, we have reacted to 9/11 exactly as the terrorists desired and exactly as President Bush told us we would not react. Our freedoms have been curtailed via the Patriot Act. Our fear of terrorism is demonstrable in the fact that going through airport security is tougher than ever for everyone from toddlers to grandmothers, and precisely because it is non-discriminatory, most people feel that the increased security does not really protect us. General Tommy Franks and others have suggested that another terrorist attack, especially if it involves chemicals or biological agents or radiological weapons, would result in the rollback of the U.S. Constitution and the imposition of martial law. We have engaged in a dubious Middle East war in Iraq. And finally, in at least one case we directly acceded to one of the demands of Osama bin Laden: we have withdrawn troops from Saudi Arabia. True, we've withdrawn troops from Saudi in order to move them into Iraq, but nonetheless we have given bin Laden at least one of the things he has demanded of us. Two years after 9/11, I still remember the feelings of that day, the mixture of horror, sadness, fear, anger, and excitement. Yet two years later, I also feel sobered and less inclined to accept the belief that this war can be won via traditional military means. Perhaps establishing a peaceful, democratic Iraq will indeed defuse much of the hatred directed toward America from the Islamic radicals. From the close-up vantage point of 2003, it is difficult to see how that will happen. The Islamic fundamentalists have a cause for which to fight and a common, clearly identifiable enemy in America. Contrarily, most Americans have to think really, really hard to justify such wars as the one we just fought in Iraq, and our enemy is not so easily identifiable. Our enemy has no national borders, no organized military that follows the rules of engagement and the Geneva Convention. Whereas in previous wars, success could be measured in towns taken, divisions destroyed, material captured or destroyed, in the present case, success is not so clearly measured and there is no way to determine when the war will be finished. That last part is what is really frightening. I fear that a hot war that lasts for twenty or thirty years provides the President and military with far too much power over our lives and the course this country takes into the future. We Americans must safeguard our freedoms carefully, not from terrorists who cannot touch us in that way anyhow, but from our leaders who do have the power, the means, and the will to curtail our liberty.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story245.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2004-01-13
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
140.147.89.42
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
As a muslim, I felt embarrased for the people that follow ben Laden and Sadamm think they are the leaders of Islam.To the people that know better, knowing the U.S.( my country)did not that do that much for us to suffer the 9/11 attacks. Allah will punish Those such as be Laden, Sadam as well as the followers who know that is the devil's dirty work. The only explaination I can concieve is that in third world countries even though the Holy Quran is free the people do not have as well acess as we do in the States. I think Allah I was born in this country, I repersent, there is no other country for me. My heart will all ways be in Michigan, California and Arkansas. To the families that lost love
ones that was doing good from the heart, they are in a better place and looking down on you, so think of them and be happy for them. Thank you, Marlon findbrucewayne@yahoo.com
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
I was at work and another employee that playes around alot told me about the tragdy. I cussed him out saying you don't say any thing of that nature. He brought me to the radio and I listen to the horror. Sadly to say he was telling the truth.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
The trust is going from people of that country that shows attude to Americans.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story130.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
anonymously
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
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Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2003-12-18
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
68.43.24.39
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I was in my kitchen and had turned on the local CBS morning show to check the traffic before I left for the day. National CBS interrupted the local to show the live images of the buildings being attacked. I couldn't feel anything until the World Trade Center fell.
My husband and I had eaten in the restaurant at the top of the building, Windows on the World, and I couldn't believe that was gone. That's what made it real for me.
I had to do something. I had been an U.S. military officer, and I had to do something. I did all I could do which was to go to the local blood bank. It probably didn't benefit New York or D.C., but it was all I could do here in addition to praying.
I spent the day there. They were short handed, so I worked the desk. People constantly came to give blood and were willing to sit the hour or two.
I was concerned about a cousin I have in New York. Our families were never close, but I hoped she was okay. I received a copy of her email in which she described how she lived across the river from the WTC and had gone to her roof after the first hit. She was up there when a second plane came around the corner and smashed into the building. She said there were papers flying everywhere. I still worry about her and hope she's okay after having seen this.
Strangely, she did exactly what I did. She went to her local blood bank and worked the desk all day.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
Sitting down at my kitchen table and crying when it all became real.
Another strong one is from the following day when I watched TV to see the Queen of England stand with others to sing our national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
I think we all have a better understanding of what's important.
I have never been a real "people person," but I reach out a lot more than I ever did. I always loved my family, but I try to do more for them. I write more. My parents lived through the Great Depression, and my father was in WWII. I always thought they were hopelessly old fashioned and a little simplistic. Now I understand them, and I find I'm adopting a lot of their attitudes and values.
I've noticed many people seem to be living more and more this way. The ornate is becoming simple. People just don't seem to want a lot of big, expensive things as once they did. Also, I've always enjoyed making things, doing crafts and sewing. After September 11, it seems as if a lot of people have started doing that. I think it's wonderful because finally more people are creating.
I have such a greater appreciation for everything on this earth, and especially in this country.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story155.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2003-12-21
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
68.218.197.47
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I was at work. It was a beautiful, sunny autumn day in the mid-West. I work in a large Medical Center and work from 9:00 to 5:30. I always come to work about 8:30 a.m. (Central time) to have breakfast in the cafeteria. I remember sitting there, looking outside and thinking how good it was to be alive on such a beautiful day. Then, for no reason, I felt terribly sad. I looked at the clock and it was about 8:45. I thought, how strange -- but it was time to go to my office and I shook off the feeling. As I rode up in the elevators, I heard people talking about the "accident" in New York. As I entered my office, I quickly learned about what was going on. I'll always wonder if that moment of sadness was the collective grief of a nation as it started to mourn its dead.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
So many -- it's hard to pin them all down. Listening in disbelief to the radio. Being very busy and being torn between doing my work or being where the radios were. I was born the month after Pearl Harbor and have grown up with stories of World War II. One of my first thoughts was that this was much bigger than that had been. And then I thought of the day Kennedy was was shot and our horror and disbelief that day. I called my mother and various members of my family, just to reassure myself that they were okay. I called my daughter in Atlanta, wishing we were closer and worrying about being so far from her. Trying to decide what the facts were versus rumors that were going around was hard. Working in Omaha and hearing that President Bush had just landed at Offutt AFB. I think not really knowing the what/who/why of what was going on and what else might be going to happen contributed to the feeling of unreality of that day.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
We have more restrictions now. Flying is more time consuming. It's harder to visit the Statue of Liberty and other places of historical significance. I think this was a wake-up call to government agencies and they are trying to keep us safe, but keeping our nation safe is almost impossible with cities that have millions of people and little towns with less than 100! We have urban areas, farming areas, mountains, deserts. Our people are diverse and of many ethnic origins. Our elders saw us through World War II and Korea, my generation saw us through Vietnam and the Gulf War, and our young generation is being asked to face the greatest challenge of all. To somehow protect the world, not just our nation, from terrorism that can strike anyplace at any time. I grieve for the loss of life that happened 9/11 but I grieve more for the young people who will lose their lives to keep us safe. And I hope that the world their children will inherit will be a safer, more peaceful world where something like this will never happen again.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story271.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2004-01-21
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
137.197.134.119
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
I awoke late that morning. I live on the upper west side of Manhattan. As i first turned on the television the reports were just coming in... a plane had hit the WTC. It made me immediately recall how a few years earlier a small commuter plane hit the Empire State Building after some problems with its navagation gear ( I think it was cloudy that day) and hit the building. It survived and a few perished. The building was fine.
It was odd and strange but not a freightening. I went in the shower and when I came out, the second tower had been hit. I was watching local news, channel 4 NBC, here in NYC. They were replaying the second hit, over and over and trying to figure out was it a missle or was this another plane, a jet in fact. It was incomprehensible. I watched in horror. At that point phone service was still possible. But as the morning progressed and the news got more freightening, Pennsylvania, The Pentagon... New York suddenly felt like a war zone. Phone service soon became unavailable.
The normally busy streets of the city quickly became desolate. An occasional emergency vehicle flew down without the normal gridlock that makes travel in the city a tedious detail.
Finally getting in touch with friends via the internet, I learned that my cousins husband was at work in the WTC that day. He had called his wife from his office in Cantor Fitzgerald, saying how a plane and hit the building, he was fine and they were evacuating. It was soon after that he left a call for his wife, while she was showering, that he left a passionate message of love for his wife and their new born child. Family members called and said I might expect him to eventually come to my apartment since travel to his Long Island home had now become impossible. He never came.
I think the single biggest for impression for anyone in the city that day was one of sheer terror. Rumors of nuclear bombs, biological attacks and more planes were rampant. While some friends went down to see what was happening downtown, I stayed huddled in my apartment alone and wondered in terrified stupor what was next. The smell of burning plastic... and what could have been human life.. wafted to the northern points of Manhattan. This as the normally well dressed men and women of Wall Street finally made it to uptown, ashen covered, disheveled and some (so I heard) bloody.
It wasn't a day of history! It was a day of fear, terror and loss. The loss of friends, the loss of security and the loss of my belief that mankind is essentially good at it's core. I lost many friends that day... one who was mearly visiting Windows on the
World restaurant attending a business seminar. We lost so much that day but we gained an awareness, that NYC didn't belong to the people who live here, it belonged to the world. So in all of the sadness and loss a new perspective was born. PJM365
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story150.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
full
Posting
Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
anonymously
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
Created by Author
Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2003-12-20
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
64.12.96.12
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Library of Congress Stories
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of more than 200 user-submitted stories gathered from the Library of Congress's "Witness and Response" exhibition staged in 2002.
LC Story
LC Story: Story
Where were you on September 11, 2001 when you heard the news? (Please share your experience of learning of the events and what you did afterwards.)
when i herdd the news i was at the doctors office getting a check up before work. at the time i was a driver for domminos pizza inc. i could not believe it i thought that it was a joke at the time.
LC Story: Memory
What is your strongest memory of that day?
the strongest memory of that day was when i went out side and saw the smoke riseing from the pentagon. i live and work about 30 min from the pentagon. i also remember that no one was able to get through to order any lunch. a coustomer came in and asked if we were afraid. no i wasent i was angry. death is certin for all of us, the question is when and how. and the manager and i knew that we as a country would do something about it. we jokes and said that we would find out who did this and turn that country into a parking lot.
LC Story: Affects
How do you perceive that the events of September 11, 2001 have affected this country and/or you personally?
if i have changed it is the fact that i am no longer afraid of what other people think, or say about me because that is just worldly ego. and i have a right to be myself and if you like it it is ok, if not tuf luck. my father and my brother used to work at the pentagon but i feel glad that they were both retired when this happend. when something like this happens all you can do is rebulid and move on and not be afraid of what might happen. when it is your time, guess what there is nothing that you can do. it is a matter of when and how.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
lc_story215.xml
911DA Item
Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.
Status
The process status of this item.
approved
Consent
Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.
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Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.
yes
Copyright
Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.
yes
Source
The source of this item.
born-digital
Media Type
The media type of this item.
story
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Whether the author created this item.
yes
Described by Author
Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.
no
Date Entered
The date this item was entered into the archive.
2004-01-07
IP Address
The IP address of the device used to submit the item.
67.100.188.116