229 20 70359 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: My husband, myself, and our two children-ages 4 1/2 & 1 yr. were on our way to Warwick, RI from our home in Bradford, RI. We were going to my 1 yr. checkup after my daughter was born. My appointment was for 9:00 am.-the ride is about 1/2 hour from Bradford. I remember walking in the doctor's office to find the radio on very loud, and the nurses standing in shock. I had just heard about what happened. My husband went for a ride with our kids while he waited for me. I was scared because they were starting to shut down highways and main streets to airports and railways. I didn't have my cell phone. I couldn't get in contact with him. I still went through with my checkup, and after I was done, my husband was waiting outside the door for me. I told him what was happening-but he already knew, listening to the radio. I kissed them all. We raced home as fast as we could. We didn't know what was going to happen next. We stayed home for the rest of the day together. Thankfully my story isn't horrifying as others are, but I think it struck everyone in different ways. 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 story3263.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. 2002-09-11 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 68.0.240.88 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: To the people of New York and Washington . My heart is with everyone that lost family on September 11 . It was such a sad day all over world , I know it touched me . It is hard to think about it been 2 years already, Well I will sign off for now.. Regards Lorraine Hardy 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 story9833.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. 2003-09-11 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 129.174.27.192 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: Thinking back on it now, Tuesday started out a little strangely. I had an appointment to conduct an evaluation at the Pentagon that morning. Usually, I am the only person from our organization who is in the Pentagon on a daily basis, but Paul came with me to assist in this evaluation.. We made plans to take the 8:20 shuttle from our offices in Skyline (to where I drive and park each morning) and arrive at the Pentagon by about 8:35 or so. The first shuttle didn?t arrive at Skyline until 9:00?..seems the one person who holds all keys to the shuttle buses (a strange way to do business) didn?t show up. So Paul and I are about 45 minutes later than we had planned. We arrive at the Pentagon about 9:10 and head to our office. We crank up the computers and the assistive technology we?re going to be using for the assessment. When that was done I opened my email. I had previously signed up for CNN?s automatic email of breaking news stories, so the story about the first Trade Center attack was already there. I tried to go to cnn.com and couldn?t get connected (not surprising on this day) when a second email bulletin arrives announcing the second New York attack. Of course, I?m sharing all this with Paul and he starts surfing the web for information, too. I decide to send an email back to some of the co-workers at Skyline to make sure they?re aware. One co-worker responded with something to the effect of ?yes, I know?..I can?t believe this is happening?. It was at this point that the plane hit the Pentagon. I heard, but much more so, felt the impact. It was a deep feeling that shook me all the way to the core of my body?..a very hard jolt. Paul and I exchange glances as if to say ?uh oh?. I opened the door of the office to look out. Our office is on the ring directly on the center courtyard (?A? ring). At first glance, I see nothing unusual; a few people in the hallway with the same puzzled/confused/worried look that I imagine I was showing. Directly across from my office is the doorway that leads to the center courtyard. In only about 5 seconds, a crowd comes bursting through the door. Two people stumbled and fell as they came through the doorway, but they bounced up and continued in. These people were running (the only people I would see run at the Pentagon this day) past our office towards the hallway that leads to the exterior entrance (on the outside or ?E? ring). Everyone is yelling ?Get out!!!? The looks on their faces, though they went by fast, were incredible; fear, pain, and confusion??and other emotions I can?t describe. I?ve never seen people?s faces look like that before, and hope I never do again. I took a glance down the hallway to my left. I didn?t know it at the time, but this was the direction toward the impact. Far down the hallway, I could see a crowd of people heading this way at a fast, fast pace. Paul and I exchanged a quick glance and moved. We did NOT have to wait to be told to leave. The email I received from the co-worker was still on the screen, so I hit ?reply? and type ?something just hit the Pentagon?.we have to evacuate??tell everyone? and hit ?send?. I just looked back at that email; it was sent at 9:36 a.m. I had enough time to grab my briefcase and we headed out. I?m guessing it was about a 100-yard walk to the entrance. I was thinking ?will we make it out before another one hits or before something in the building blows??. The corridor was very full, but everyone walked quickly and orderly?.no running; no panicking. Remember the picture of the Pentagon I sent with the red circle and yellow square? The side of the building towards the bottom of the picture is where we exited, just about at the center of that side of the building. We stepped out the door and the first thing you notice was the huge, boiling, pitch-black cloud down to the left. Everyone keeps walking, but we all constantly look back at it; look ahead, look to the side?..look ahead, look to the side. We walk down the exterior steps (not in the picture; they were added since that picture was taken) to the parking lot level. No one is milling or standing about, we all head out across the lot towards I-395. I remember there being two women in Army uniforms in front of me. They walked past a traffic control officer?.I didn?t hear what the women said but the officer screamed at them ?Go away?and don?t come back!?. Across the lot, everyone keeps with the ?look ahead, look back? business until we get across the lot to the embankment of the highway. The highway here is elevated in relation to the level of the parking lot, but is on earthen embankments instead of bridgework. It was at this point that we finally stopped long enough to take a good look back. The cloud of smoke is larger and even blacker than before. All my senses were overloaded??the sight of the cloud and the brilliant orange flames licking over the top of the building; the sights and sounds of the shocked crowds; the sound of the sirens coming from every direction??the rumble of the firetrucks roaring past us??the smell and the taste of the jet fuel. It was here that I saw one man I recognized as one who had come running in from the courtyard. He was telling what he?d seen to others, and this was the first time I actually heard the word ?airplane?. He said he was in the courtyard when it impacted. Over the top of the building came the cloud?..along with debris that rained down on the courtyard. I don?t know if it was tiny bits or huge chunks; he kept re-starting his story for people passing by who heard him and asked him to start again from the beginning. We stand here for maybe a minute or two, but we realize we have to leave?..we didn?t want to be in the way of the rescue efforts and we didn?t want to be in the line of a second attack. We quickly decided to walk under the highway to either the Crystal City or Pentagon City subway stations. We planned to take the subway to King Street station, which is the closest to our Skyline offices. We planned to call the office and hope that someone would come get us. We crossed the highway and were getting close to the subway station when it hit me: there are people who love me who don?t know if I?m dead or alive. We didn?t have a cell phone, so we headed into Macy?s to look for a payphone. Between Paul and I, we had enough change to make one call. I called back to our office, and dialed the extension of someone I hoped would be at her desk?.she was not. I left a voice mail explaining our plans; I also left Denise?s work number and asked her to please call Denise to let her know that I was alright. At this point, Macy?s announced they are closing, along with all the other stores in the area. We head out towards the Metro station again. A lady comes up and asks if we came from the Pentagon and what had happened. She was a Federal worker in one of the many office buildings on this side of the highway?.she said practically everyone left the buildings, even though they had not yet received an official evacuation order. There were hundreds and hundreds of people??some milling about; some walking quickly with a purpose. There were a few people sobbing and crying. As we continued to the Metro, I noticed a lady walking along with us. She was probably about 27-30, and she looked like she was going to lose control at any minute. She was crying and shaking and she had a scared, dazed, confused look on her face. I asked her if she was ok. She looked at me and said ?no??but I could tell she wasn?t physically injured. I asked where she was headed, and she was going to Seven Corners?..farther past our Skyline offices but in the same general direction. I told her where we were headed, took her hand, and brought her along with us. I asked her name?.it was Steph. I asked if she?d been in the Pentagon. She told me she works in the office of a congressman from Texas. On a normal day, she would have already been at the Capitol, having driven directly there. However, she said today she put her car in the shop for routine maintenance and she taking the bus into work. There is a large Metro bus facility at the Pentagon; it?s a big transfer hub for the system. She said her bus was pulling into the Pentagon when the attack occurred??she watch the plane hit the building. She was about to lose it again, and I knew she needed to have a different focus. So I introduced her to Paul and told her of our plans. We got to the Metro station, and joined the crowd that was gathered around the stationmaster. I heard the stationmaster say that no trains were running north (towards the city). Someone asked him about southbound trains; he said he no idea about those but if we wanted to try we could head down to the platform. All the turnstiles were open?..no one was going to make all these people go through the process of digging for money (if they had any on them) and buying fare cards. Our little group went down to the platform and waited with the crowd for the next train. Of course, people began talking?..not many wild rumors, but this is where we heard about a car bomb at the State Department (false), a 2nd hit on the Pentagon (false) and reports that more planes were headed towards the city (who knew??). I was bracing myself for a bad scene?.I was anticipating the trains to be already filled to capacity and having to crowd in like sardines if we could even board at all. The first train arrived, and amazingly it was completely empty. Everyone waiting climbed aboard?.the crowd was small enough that no one even had to stand. So far, so good. The train heads south. After Pentagon City, the next stop is National Airport. At this point, the trains still stop at the Airport; it would be a little bit later before that practice is halted. The Airport is to our left as we head south. I look that way and notice no air or ground activity. But the sight to the right of the train is more astounding. To the right side are parking lots and garages, the access roads to the airport, and small areas of green, open space (traffic islands, landscaping around lots, etc.). There is a literal sea of people there on foot. I couldn?t begin to imagine the numbers. Of course, the airport had already been evacuated?..these were the people I was seeing. Its two more stops to the King Street station. On the train, people are calm. Where were you? Where are you going? Several people were visitors to Washington; one man said he was supposed to leave for New York this morning. He?s asking everyone about locations of Amtrak stations and car rental facilities. I?m sitting beside Steph and we?re talking with each other about what we know of the morning?s events. A woman behind us overhears and joins in our conversation. She was at the Pentagon for a job interview. She had just arrived at the South Parking entrance when the plane hit. She asks where we are headed, and we discover she has her car at King Street and is going in the general direction we are. She offers Steph, Paul and I a ride back to our office. Once we arrive at King Street, its about a 5 block walk to her car. The traffic level on King Street is incredible?..the vast majority of the traffic heading in the general direction from I-395 to the Capitol Beltway (I-95 and I-495); an easterly direction. We reach her car and head west against the traffic towards Skyline. The approximately 3 mile trip takes a bout an hour and a half. Odd?..but I can?t remember looking at my watch at all during the morning?.time becomes unmeasureable and hard to estimate. Its during this trip that we hear on the radio of the collapse of the Trade Center towers. We see the fighter jet activity overhead. We inch along, numb from the information overload we?re getting. With the traffic in such a chaotic state, I realize its foolish and useless to get in my car now. So I head up to my office in Skyline to try to contact loved ones. Its impossible to get a local phone line?..of course, all cell phone and land phone circuits are swamped. Fortunately, I?m able to get an email connection. I was amazed with the emails I had already received from friends everywhere around the country. I responded to let them know I am ok. I ask my cross-continental friends to please try to contact my wife and my sisters. I spend about an hour and a half trying to get in touch with people. I?m finally able to make long-distance calls, and reach my sisters and dad and my in-laws. None of them have heard from wife, nor have they been able to get a phone connection with her. At about 12:45, I decide to try to head for home. My commute is on I-395 and I-95; two notoriously busy routes. What I see there is eerie?..the traffic heading away from DC is almost non-existent. Fewer cars than 3:00 on a Sunday morning. Once I get south of the Beltway, the north-bound lanes of I-95 are at a stand-still for miles. But my drive home is incredibly easy. I decide to go straight home to see if Denise is there. She is a teacher, and I?d heard of many schools in the area dismissing early. She is not there?.there are no telephone messages either. I check her email account to see if she?d retrieved my messages; she had not. The thing I must do now is drive to her school; I imagine her having received no word of my safety, and worry about her wondering for 4 hours if I am dead or alive. I get to her school without incident?..when our eyes finally meet, I can?t describe that feeling. I?m home. I?ve made it. Thankfully, the voice message I left with my co-worker was indeed retrieved. The co-worker called Denise?s school and gave the message I was ok. Denise did receive the message?but only after 2 ? hours of wondering if I was dead. That?s the chronology of the day?s events. I continue to relive the emotions. I remember walking through the Pentagon corridor and thinking ?please??let me get outside before the next one hits?. I remember walking across that parking lot and feeling more vulnerable than I ever have in my life?..I felt like a rabbit scurrying across a field trying to get to cover before the hawk swoops down. I still wonder if the bastards targeted that area of the Pentagon, or if it was just a random side of the building they hit. I remember on that morning thinking about the White House?.the Capitol?.the Gateway Arch?.the Golden Gate Bridge??Sears Tower. Was anything else gone? Are there people that I know, or familiar faces I see everyday in the corridors, who are gone forever? I remain thankful that Paul was with me that day. We were a team and we stuck together. It made a big difference to go through this with someone I knew. I remain thankful for the network of my friends around the country who jumped into action to help me contact my family. My sister?s office said they received about 10 or 12 different calls from people saying they?d heard from me and I was ok. This is over-whelming??but not surprising. My nephew in Missouri knew the name of my son?s school. He went to the website and emailed every teacher, administrator and staff person there with the message?..and the request to help get a message to my wife. My nephew received about 50 or 60 responses from those strangers he emailed?..many of them corresponding more than once with information about what was going on with my children and the situation in the DC area. Like every American, my life has been changed. I feel the common bond with all 280,000,000. But I also feel something at a different level??I was there. I was at the target and I got away. I?m not experiencing survivor guilt, but I can?t help thinking ?why me??. Why did I get away when so many did not? Fate? A fluke? Dumb luck? I just don?t know. But I do know that we didn?t get our toes stepped on??we didn?t get a slap in the face??we received a hay-maker punch right in the gut that knocked the wind out of us. But we?ve caught our breath now. Its pay-back time. We have to do everything we can to eradicate this evil and the sub-humans who practice it. We all know it now?..this is war. 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 story1234.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. 2002-08-19 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 68.48.169.173 Annotation Annotations to this item. Internet Military Pentagon Police Officers Struggle to get home U.S. retribution DC:1 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I was at work, a co worker by chance put on the radio just as it was announced that a plane had just crashed into one of the Towers of the World Trade Center. Thinking of an unfortunate accident, I was working when minutes later it was announced that another plane had crashed into the other Tower. It is very hard to describe the feeling that came over me at that point. The best way is an incredible feeling of fear and doom. At that moment came the realization of what indeed was really going on. It seemed like minutes later there came word of the The Pentagon attack and of planes that were unaccounted for. We had a television at work and put that on. Although I did not want to watch, I needed to. I called my mothers house where my daughter was staying as she was home sick from school. I asked her if she was watching television and she was. She was thirteen at the time. The World Trade Center was one of her favorite places. She would go there when she was visiting her father. When the Towers fell she called me crying saying "Mommy, my Towers are gone." I remember watching the Towers falling and the cloud of smoke coming around the corner with people running. It seemed so surreal that I was expecting Godzilla to come around the corner next. But it was not a monster movie, it was reality. The sadness and fear that began that day did not go away for a very long time. For weeks afterword I did not want to be alone. Each night my friends and I would get together at our Elks Lodge of which I am a member and officer, just to be with each other. The feelings have subsided but never will go away completely. I know though that this is not a bad thing because although we must perservere and go on with life we can never forget or become complacent 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 story7368.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. 2002-09-14 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 152.163.188.6 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: Q: How did you witness history on September 11th? Share your experience. A: "I was ony my way out of the door to the gym when the phone rang. It was my friend who asked me if I'd heard, I said 'heard what?' She said, 'turn on your T.V.!' I asked, 'what channel?' and she said 'it doesn't matter.' That scared me, I knew it was something horrible. I was glued to the T.V. the entire day." Q: Has your life changed because of September 11, 2001? If so, tell us how. A: "In some ways it changed, I always felt that we Americans were safe here in America. Now I think differently. I feel a little more anxious about terrorism and weapons of mass destruction. Positive ways that have changed we is that I want to be more helpful and understanding. It makes you realize that you shouldn't take every day for granted and to appreciate your friends and family." Q: What do you think should be remembered about September 11th? A: "That innocent lives were taken. These people went to work like they do every day unsuspecting of the horrible events that would follow. These maniac terrorists turned our own airlines into bombs. People were choosing to jump out a building 100 stories above, because that was their best choice. We cannot forget that this evil exists, we can't loose our focus on defeating it. On the positive side, there were a lot of heroes that day: firemen, police, and fellow New Yorkers, and passengers aboard the highjacked planes." Q: Did you fly an American flag after the events of September 11th? Have your feelings about the American flag changed as a result of September 11th? A: "Yes, it was difficult to try to purchase a flag, they were all sold out! Within a week we had one flying, in our front yard as well as our automobiles. I've always been proud of our flag, but I feel now more comfortable about openly displaying it. 9/11 brought patriotism to all Americans. It made us want to tell the world that we stand united and we're proud to be 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 story8845.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. 2002-12-17 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 216.54.14.84 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: The bell rang for my fourth period class on September 11, 2001 and i went straigt to my Biology class. The moment i steped foot in class i turned around and stared looking at the T.V and saw that the twin towers were on fire and i was clueless. I had no idea of what was going on, everyone in class was scared and worried about there parents . It was a heart braking moment for every single person in our school that day. It was a devastating destroyment to our country but one day we will get them back and destroy there lives like they did to us. Making sure that every single person that was involved will go straight to hell. 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 story10961.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. 2004-09-12 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 4.249.159.142 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I was in my studio after having gotten my girls up to prepare for school. A message was being left on the answering machine, the voice was that of my mother urgently telling me to turn on the tv that the pentagon and WTC were being attacked. - then she hung up. I swiftly went to the tv and clicked it on. I could scarcely imagine what she had just said but now, on tv, were the pictures- my daughters and I watched and prayed. We saw the second plane hit the tower - it did not seem real, my mind could barely wrap around what I was seeing. My girls watched with a mature and compassionate seriousness for their ages of 10 and 7 and I explained as best I could but mostly we were silent. We heard of people jumping out of windows in fear of being burned to death - I was grateful such imagery was not shown for the dignity of families and these immediate victims. I felt sick. The knowledge was enough. People jumping to their death, trying to choose a more immediate way to die in their panic. When the towers collapsed I knew that the numbers of people yet caught in those buildings were not likely to survive the severity - it was just too absolute.The buildingd disintigrated and melted away as if they were but made of sugar and not metal and concrete. The engulfing and sweeping cloud was like a monster, filled with minute pieces of concrete pulverized into sand and if that wasn't enough to choke the people I saw running for their lives from it, the smoke and jet fuel and other debris made it like the breath of Satan. The people looked like the images of Pompeii and the whirring of the fireman's alert alarms was deafening, even from the tv let alone, what it must have been like right in the mix of it all. Later I saw the numerous members of family and friends going about with pictures of their beloved missing. It made me so sad I cried and cried. When I heard the confirmation of responsibility belonging to Usama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda and their "reasons", their praising God as if He'd approve of this .. I wished the earth would open and swallow them up off in their caves hiding like cowards. I think they will be in for a very big surprise when they must give account to God for what they did and I do not think it will earn them martyr's crowns, nor heaven. I don't think such murderous deeds so pridefully done all for the agenda of selfishness merit anything eternally blessed. America isn't perfect, our forces have done things I am not glad about and that I think have been wrong - but I'll tell you something - our nation has also, for all our faults, done more good, given more care, rushed to help than many a nation who don't bother to and we aren't usually shown any big thanks - usually it is criticism. We are told we only give because it is in a "selfish" interest of our Govt. Well, I don't dispute this but it is NOT the *only* reason we give and try to help - American's are made up of people from all over the world. Many of us have families/relations elsewhere and so we have the ability to look at the catastrophies and sorrows in other nations and see them as family.We realize, this could happen here. Americans for all our flaws are extremely warm and compassionate people and we just hate to not help when we see earthquake victims, flood victims, war victims. I am proud I am a yank.No, our nation isn't perfect but we have a good and decent heart as a people made up from all over this earth. 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 story7404.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. 2002-09-14 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 63.206.119.226 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I witnessed history on September 11,2001. It wasn't live but it was hours after. My teacher told me about the attacks in school, but it was at the end of the day. The teachers should have told us about the attacks right when they happened. At first, I didn't know it was as bad as it was. I wasn't taking it seriously in school. The teachers didn't turn on the TV in school, so I couldn't see it. When I got home, I was shocked. I was scared because I knew it happened once, so it could happen again. That is how i witnessed history on September 11,2001. 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 story8494.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. 2002-10-18 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 24.60.58.139 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I was in rush hour traffic, traveling from Clinton, Maryland to my office on 16th Street, N.W. I heard a report on WKYS that a plane had just crashed into the World Trade Building. Immediately, I knew it was terrorist. One reason is because that is a "no fly zone." It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out. I immediately called a friend who was working at GSA. I told them about the first plane, suddenly, I heard on the radio another plane hit the second World Trade Building. As we were having a telephone conversation, I noticed an American Airline's Plane flying very low. I stated to my friend "there is a plane flying very low." Minutes later, they stated the plane had just hit the Pentagon. I then began to panic. I thought we were being bombed. I had now arrived at my office. There was panic in the streets and the building. They told us to evacuate immediately. I grabbed my client bills and rushed out of the building. I headed back to Clinton, Md and traveled down 9th Street. People were running down the middle of the street and driving the wrong way. My daughter called me from college in Baltimore, Maryland screaming that we were under attack and to get out of D.C. I assured her that I was headed home. Traffic was very heavy on the SW Freeway. As I approached the exit for the Suitland Parkway, I observed people parked along the side of the road video taping the Pentagon on fire. You could see the black cloud of smoke. I actually thought the world was ending. Once I hit Maryland side, I felt safe. I immediately stopped by a friend's house who worked in the C ring at the Pentagon. She had taken the day office. Her phone was ringing off the hook. We sit there and just cried and prayed for the country. I believe this was a warning from God. Because we have taken prayer out of our lives and replaced it with so much sin. My youngest child attends Gwynn Park High, she called me from her cell and advised me that their school was closing early. This day, I did not leave from in front of the TV. I could not believe what was happening. I was afraid to sleep. Every time my daughter and I heard a plane from Andrews fly over our house, we thought we were being bombed. My 15 year old slept with me for about a month. She was terrified. I live very close to Hyde Airfield. I believe one of the hijackers tried to rent a crop plane from there. The next day, once things had set in, the question "why and how." My daughter discovered that a lot of her class mates parents were missing. The whole time this tragedy of occurring, I thought, my God, why didn?t they shut all airports down. This should be automatic, without any executive decision. Here I am, just a working citizen, and I would have shut everything down, it didn?t take me long to figure out what was happening. This day of mourn touched very close to home and I will never forget where I was and what I was doing. My God Bless America and keep us all safe. 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 story1188.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. 2002-08-19 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 207.91.86.5 Annotation Annotations to this item. Pentagon Religion Terrorism DC:2 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: My name is Mary Ellen Casey. I was born in 1953 and live in Bristol, Conn. After the death of John F. Kennedy and the Vietnam war that there would be some kind of Peace in the world. I guess that was a wrong assuption. I was not ready for what happed last September 11th. I had been laid off from a small company here at home last July 2001. I was on my way to St. Joseph Rectory for daily mass not realizing what was about to happen. I had the car radio tuned to a college campus station and as always change it after to a National Public radio station. I did so after mass was over and i was on my way home. I thought I had heard the annoucer say somthing about a plane hitting one of the Trade Towers. When I got home my mother had the t.v. on and it was true. We both sat there watching the events unfolding before our eyes. My mother made the remark that "this could not happened again." She lived through both WW 1 and 2 and the Vietnam war. All I hope and pray that this does not erupt into another "Vietnam" war. 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 story3142.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. 2002-09-11 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 204.60.218.67 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I had gotten to work at 8 that morning and just after feeding the children breakfast news began to come in about the first plane hitting the towers...We were all shocked that that could have happened and then we heard about the second one...we knew then we were being attacked,,,soon the Pentagon was hit and we didnt know how many other planes were still unaccounted for...The post went on alert, parents began to pick up their children and we began to hear stories of family members that were on the planes...It was hard to believe that as far as we were from NYC that there were people close to us on the planes...Fear was settling over all of us...not knowing what was going to happen next,, fearing for our own kids that were in local schools. The whole day was just surreal,,,going through the motions just to get through the day....I spent most of the night online or watching the news...Seeing the pictures of the planes hitting the towers and the collapse just made brought me to tears....all of the innocent men, women and children lost on that day and for what....The insane ideas of one man pushed into the minds of others to do his evil deeds for him...The attacks hurt us bad but that day brought us together like we havent been in so long...Our people didnt die in vain...Good will prevail over evil and in the end God will have the last word...God bless the USA. 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 story7455.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. 2002-09-15 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 65.83.161.52 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I was dispatching for the courier company I work for when drivers began typing me meassages over the computer that a plane had just struck the world trade center. It seemed like time came to a screeching halt as the messages concerning the second tower being struck then the Petagon kept flashing before me on the monitor. It became increasingly difficult to carry on a buisness as usual attitude with the couriers with news of this magnitude. Our run activity dropped off sharply in the next hour which gave me the chance to step out of the office. I ran back to our maintenance office which I knew had a t.v. and began watching the tradgedy unfold with tears in my eyes like so many Americans.I visited and actually stood on top of one of the towers during a visit to New York in 1991 with some friends so I could appreciate the vastness of the loss. Since 9/11 I've tried to become a better family man and have grown more dedicated to my faith in God. I pray for the families and the victims and hope that we never have to see such horror ever again in our lifetimes. It was unfortunately a wake up call for alot of us. God Bless America !!!! 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 story7138.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. 2002-09-13 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 64.112.136.130 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: On September 11, 2001, three days before my birthday, I was in Global Studies class at 9:30 a.m. when the most tragic thing in history happened. I was sitting with my friends when my teacher Mrs. Capen was explaining what was happening that morning. This event was the World Trade Centers being hit by two separate airplanes. Approximately one and a half hour after being hit by the airplanes the second World Trade Tower collapsed. A few minutes later the first World Trade Tower fell down. Before they collapsed another airplane hit the Pentagon. A part of the Pentagon collapsed also. This event is so tragic that I really can't say much about it. I am so amazed that such a thing could happen. Who in their right mind does such a thing or plans such a thing and is willing to die just for this to happen? Now I now who would do such a thing; bin Laden. He is a crazy man to think of blowing up people just because he doesn't like the religion and the lifestyle of the people who live in America. I really feel sad for the people who were in the airplanes. Some of them could have been family going on vacation and thinking of having a good time, only to find out their plane was hijacked and was going to fly into the Pentagon or the World Trade Center. I also feel sad for the people in and around the World Trade Center in New York City. Most just woke up and were heading to work thinking of a normal day not about having an airplane hit and destroyed their work place. I can't describe the feeling inside of me. It is a mixed feeling. It is both sadness and hatred. I feel sad for the people in the planes and buildings. I hate the people who did this. They killed around three thousand two hundred people that were in the planes, the World Trade Centers and Pentagon. They were innocent people just going to work or on a vacation. I think that the United States should go to Afghanistan and find bin Laden and put him in the electric chair. Then they should go and kill all of the people that were and are involved with this event. I think they should destroy all terrorists' organization involved in this. The people of America have shown a lot of support for their country. They have sent medical supplies down to Ground Zero. They sent food and clothing for the fire fighters, policemen, and the injured. A lot of people went to stores to buy flag's and clothes with patriotic colors on them. Since this tragic day the airline business has been going down. Most of the people that usually fly on an airplane are now driving their car because the fear of having their plane hijacked. It is now very hectic to get on a airplane because of all of the security checks. Some people just don't have the patience to wait. This event will stick in everybody's mind as the most tragic thing to happen in their lifetime. The event is going to be treated just like a war, accept we didn't find the man or men responsible for this. I will especially remember this because it is so close to my birthday. 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 story714.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. 2002-06-05 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 168.169.8.39 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: It is hard to begin of the things that I felt and saw on T.V. When the first plane hit my heart sanked, I have seen plane crashes prior, but when the second one hit I knew the United States was in trouble. I turned on my computer to see if my son had emailed me. My son is in the Navy and his job along with others is to take care of situations when needed, "he is encharge of missals". No message from my son, I then emailed him to wish him the best along with his crew on the ship. I couldn't go to work that day, I needed to be at home watching T.V., and if needed to be by my phone and computer in case my son needed to reach me. My heart is still saden of what had happened on September 11th,2001. I will never forget that day, nor will I forget the pain that all of us Americans felt.Our trust was robed from our country. No one will ever be able to give that back to us. I wish those to be blessed with what they have, since their our others that have lost alot. My your God bless and keep you safe. Truly Norene Demaline Elyria, Ohio 44035 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 story7293.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. 2002-09-13 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 152.163.188.6 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I was in 6th grade on Sept. 11th, 2001. I remember going to my English class as normal for 1st period and just kinda going along with everything as if everything was normal and ok. Little did I know that terrorists were going to hurt our country so bad that day. As were were sitting in class a kid sitting accross from me says something about planes flying into buildings somewhere in New York. He was quickly silenced by the teacher who was advised not to allow us to watch t.v. to see what had happened or to even speak of it if we did know anything. Our entire school was in confusion and the rest of the day was just sad and not intact. Some teachers didn't do as they were told and let us watch for a few moments on the News what was going on. only being 11 years old we didnt quite understand it all. It was to much to grasp. When i went home that night, which was also my mothers birthday, our whole family just sat together and didnt really say all that much. There deffinately wasnt a mood to celebrate. We were all deeply hurt by what had happened and We Will Never Forget! Our country has come a long way, I just got back form NY about a week ago, If you get the chance go and see the site of the WTC it is truly heart breaking. Its one thing to see it on t.v. but you have to be able to see it in real life in order to grasp the true mass behind it all... 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 story11274.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. 2005-01-31 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 63.20.45.127 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: HELLO I MYSELF WAS AT WORK WHEN I HEARD WHAT WAS GOING ON IN NEW YORK ON THE RADIO AND I WENT TO SEE WHAT WAS GOING ON,SO I WENT TO WATCH THE TV IN THE OFFICE WHERE I WORK. ABOUT THAT TIME WAS WHEN THE SECOND PLANE HIT THE TOWER !!! IT WAS LIKE A NIGHTMARE COMING TRUE WE ALL STARTED CRYING TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS GOING ON. IT WAS UNREAL HOW I FELT YOU CAN NOT EXPLAIN. I STARTED TO PRAY AND THEN I CALLED MY MOM WHO LIVES IN FLA. AND TALK TO HER TO MAKE SURE SHE WAS DOING OKAY ALSO. SHE MAY NOT LIVE IN NEW YORK OR BOSTON BUT I STILL HAD TO HEAR HER VOICE TO MAKE SURE SHE WAS OKAY. MY HEART GOES OUT TO EACH AND EVERYONE THAT WAS EFFECTED BY THIS. WHICH SHOULD BE ANYBODY THAT IS A HUMAN BEING NO MATTER WHAT RELIGION OR NATIONALITY. EVERYDAY I THINK ABOUT THIS DAY IT WAS LIKE WE LOST A FRIEND OR LOVED ONE EVEN IF YOU WERE LUCKY ENOUGH NOT TO LOOSE ANY FAMILY OR FRIENDS THE USA WILL SURVIVE AND GO ON I HOPE AND PRAY THIS DOES NOT HAPPEN TO THE USA OR ANY OTHER COUNTRY AGAIN. GOD BLESS EVERYONE D.RODE OF KENTUCKY 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 story4631.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. 2002-09-11 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 64.12.96.8 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I was at work in Great Neck, New York when the first plane struck the first tower. At that time, it was mistakenly thought that a small communter plane has lost its way and had struck the tower. As the events unfolded and the news reports began, we realized how wrong the previous information was. We listened to the radio in horror and then we managed to get a television channel working and saw the second tower being struck by the next airplane. There are no words powerful or poignant enough to describe the complete shock of being totally helpless and watching the deliberate annihilation of human lives. Then the towers began to fall and the sky seemed to literally rain dust, metal, papers, people. People were jumping from the buildings they were so desperate. We watched, tears streaming down our faces, as people were running blindly, through the streets trying to find somewhere safe. People were being supported, carried, led by the hand by complete strangers, who in that instant, we not strangers but friends. It was also incredible to watch the people stream out of the city on foot, in the streets, across bridges, walking like zombies. I called my mom and dad who were at home in Queens and who were supposed to be flying to New Orleans for a vacation. My parents had worked downtown before the Trade Center was even built. My dad can remember the area before the Towers, watched them being constructed and now saw them fall. My sister called me also and told me she and her colleagues were going to give blood. I called my mother and father in law in Sicily to assure them that my husband, a construction worker, and I were physically fine. Just one year prior to the attacks, my husband and I had taken all of his siblings and their families, on their first trip to America and in town for our wedding,to the Twin Towers. I look at the photographs now and remember when we were all there together on a bright, sunny day taking in the sights without a care in the world. As I was speaking to my father-in-law, the Pentagon was struck. I will always remember my father-in-law asking me "What evil has come to your country?" I didn't have an answer for him. My husband called me and told me he was going home. All the large digging equipment was being taken to the Trade Center site. I soon left as well and went home to my husband to watch the news, talk to friends and family, making sure everyone was okay. Unfortunately, not everyone was. My cousin lost her husband, a firefighter. He was one of the first people physically in the building and he never came out. He left behind my cousin and their daughter who was 2 years old. The next morning, as my husband was leaving for work, he told me that he didn't want to worry me the night before but he was going to do search and rescue at Ground Zero. I have never been so worried in my life. Ground Zero looked like a "nuclear winter" as someone described it and nothing was stable. I spoke with my husband once that day and then waited for him to come home. My friend came and waited with me and at 1:00 a.m. he came home. He never really discussed what horrors he saw there but did tell me that there were indeed horrors. He still doesn't say a lot. It is one year later and it is still devestating. Seeing the tributes and the symbols of patriotism bring instant tears to my eyes. My husband still continues to work at Ground Zero so it is still a big part of our lives. My husband, Mario, is a hero in my eyes. Above all else, I am so very, very proud to be a New Yorker and so proud to be an American. 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 story3285.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. 2002-09-11 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 12.30.84.3 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I remember the day of September 11th being beautiful. A huge vast blue sky with billowing clouds. I was running a little late for work that day, I left my apartment across the river in Guttenberg, NJ in a rush to catch the NY Waterway shuttle bus down to the ferry to make my way downtown. I had given my company 2 weeks notice the day before on 9/10, so I was looking forward to beginning the next phase of my career. I was looking forward to those 2 weeks; thinking it was bittersweet--starting something very new, but saying goodbye to the people I had worked closely with for the previous 6 years. I remember walking into my office that day, smile on my face, in good spirits, having absolutely no idea that my world was going to get turned upside down. I chatted with various people in the office, joked around and felt that pang of homesickness that I knew I would inevitably feel when I left the company for a new one. The view from my desk was the WTC. The office I worked in was pretty much across the street from it. I heard a large explosion and saw balls of fire shooting through the air. I can still hear the glass falling in my mind--it was loud and frightening--and our windows were closed!! You wouldn't have known it though. One good friend of mine started screaming--I'll never forget the way she sounded with the terror in her voice. The flames coming from the windows looked fierce. The manager did not want any of us to leave as he felt at the time the safest place was for us to be inside, not out where the falling glass was. We got word shortly after the first explosion that it wasn't a bomb like many of us had first suspected, but in fact it was a plane. Naively I thought to myself "well, that could happen...there must have been something terribly wrong with the mechanics or something..." Who would have thought that some insane terrorist would use a plane as such a weapon of mass destruction? As I walked back to my desk, I looked up at the fire and right before my eyes, I watched the second plane go flying into the building, and huge chunks of it go flying out the other end in massive flames...the sound was unbearable, the sight was even worse. At that moment, I grabbed my belongings and began to run. Tears streaming down my face--thinking of the people I knew that worked there--thinking my mother was supposed to be in a meeting there--thinking the world was ending--I ran down the stairs with hundreds of other people. 30 flights of stairs to get down to the ground floor. I ran out of the building around to the front and looked up. The unthinkable had happened...People were jumping out of the towers...the sounds were unbelievable. Sirens sounded everywhere, people running everywhere and then stopping to get a better look. I decided then to run. I ran down to where the ferry would dock. I couldn't believe the amount of people standing around, carrying normal conversations, at some point even laughing amongst themselves...I understand now that people deal with grief in their own way, and that our reactions are not the same. There was a wonderful group of Wall Street Brokers on the ferry dock that were so protective. By this point I was nearly hysterical, hyper-ventilating and terrified of what I had witnessed, more terrified that my mother might be inside. There was so much pushing and shoving--so much pandamonium on the floating ferry dock. The harbor master said no one would board the ferry out until they all got off the dock. I refused to go as did almost everyone there. The panicked pushing continued. The wall streeters formed a circle around me and helped me get on the ferry so that I could get home. I frantically began calling my now fiance and mother to find them. I remember being on that ferry, coming around the tip of manhattan and seeing the first tower collapse. Everyone on the ferry went flying to one side as they all tried to get a good look. I remember finally getting through to my fiance (we were not engaged at the time) and he told me that the pentagon had gotten hit as well. I screamed on the ferry at this, relayed what I had heard and chills were running through me as if I had just been submerged in buckets of ice water. We were at war. A wonderful woman--I wish I even had gotten her name--sat with me, held my hand, and gave me her water to drink. She tried to calm me and comfort me. On that 15 minute ferry ride back which seemed like hours, she showed me such kindness that I will never forget her and I wish I could thank her. She hugged me as I got on the ferry bus, said god-bless and I managed to get home. I remember running across the street to look over the river and saw nothing but a cloud of thick smoke, the smell of which I will never forget. When the second tower fell, I was watching it from across the river. I went to the store, bought two bottles of wine and drank them in an hour and a half. I never got drunk from them, I was merely numb. Eventually my fiance was able to get home from where he worked in Hoboken. I think we stood in our living room holding each other and sobbing for a good half an hour. Welcome to Hell. I did end up getting in touch with my mother. Miraculously she had to be in Brooklyn instead of downtown that day. She went down to the brooklyn bridge and drove people to working subway stations and bus stops that day, into the evening. We were very lucky that day. We lost too many people. The funerals and memorial services were too many and too sad. I had spoken with one of my good friends on September 10th to set up a happy hour because of my new job situation and that I would be leaving the area. Little did I know it was the last time I would speak to him again. We moved three weeks later--my new job was in Morristown NJ. I have only been downtown 4 times since then, I think it's still a little hard to see it the way it is now. Though everytime I do get down there, I miss NY even more, especially because it was where I was raised and grew up. There is nothing like NY and the amazing city that it is. What I have come to recognize even more is how truly incredible the people of NY really are, and that they really know how to come together. Since the tragedy, I think we are all quite a bit more appreciative of what we have, who we have in our lives, and of what a great country we live in...I know I am. 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 story1657.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. 2002-09-02 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 216.206.240.120 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: It started as a normal day . . . I work as the Director of Administration for the VA/DC Sales office of WorldCom. At that time our office was located in Pentagon City. Move the DEA Building and we could see the Pentagon from our floor. When the plane hit I was in a meeting with one of my managers when all of the sudden we felt the building shake. Nothing major mind you but enough. At first I didn't think anything of it because us being in an urban area with construction going on all around sometimes our building does tremble like that. It wasn't until we looked out the windows on the side facing the Pentagon and saw the smoke that we realized what was going on. We of course evacuated and the area was in pandemonium. I think for myself the scariest part was not being able to reach my mom and dad because the circuits were busy. Not being able to reach my boyfriend to let him know I was alright. ( He lives in Richmond but being able to hear his voice FINALLY was very comforting.) We also couldn't get home. Our cars were parked at the Residence Inn Pentagon City and they weren't letting any cars out or in. We stayed there for awhile but then left as they needed the space for the triage unit they were setting up. We ended up at the Sheraton Inn in Crystal City and they gave us a room for free. Let us make as many calls as we wanted in order to reach our loved ones and gave us a meal. They were our heros that day as they took us in when we had nowhere to go. When we finally got home we just thanked God that were were safe and our loved ones were safe. We watched a lot of news that day on into the night. Finally, on the 12th we couldn't watch anymore and watched Sesame Street where there isn't terror attacks and the biggest problem is somebody bothering Oscar. When we finally got back to work on the 13th we could see the damage on our way in (395)and you could smell the smoke in the air. When all was said and done there was a lot of anger, a lot of tears, and a lot of questions. No one will forget that day 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 story3009.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. 2002-09-11 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 166.44.40.54 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 September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: At just before 2 pm our time i was getting ready to go to a funeral for my sisters best friend. She had dies from lukemia a few days earlier and the mood was pretty solomb. No television or radio was on and we were all dressing up smart. We went to the funeral and cried for her and knew nothing of the attacks on the WTC's or the pentagon. When we got home at about 5pm out time (12ET) i went onto the innternet and looked at the front page of AOL. i couldnt beleive reading the headline. 'world trade centres collape' i thought what on earth. I turned the TV on and saw a reporter standing in a dusty street in new york and thought this cant be happening. I ran down stairs and told my mother and sister who quickly put the tele on. we all sat and watched the footage and i couldnt beleive it. over and over i watched the trade centres collapse. all that week i watched the news and learned as much as i could about the attacks. Even though i didnt know of any victims my heart is full of greif for all those families that did and i think about the trade centres every day of my life. Go and get those who commited this atrocity, and bring trust, honesty and security back to the world. 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 story8484.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. 2002-10-17 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 195.93.33.12