263 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: I was listening to my Guns N Roses CD going over the bridge from NJ to SI, NY so I had no clue what was happening. When I got to Hylan Boulevard in Staten Island, NY the streets were full of fire engines and police cars zooming towards the Verazzano Bridge. I figured there was a bad car accident up ahead. Little did I know probably a good number of those guys never returned home. It wasnt until I got to my job in Staten Island that someone told me a plane hit the WTC. Even then I thought it was like a small Cesna or something. Little did I know what lied ahead. 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 story11362.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. 2005-04-04 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 68.38.207.178 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 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 been sent home from school on that day and was sitting watching TV. As the first planes impact travelled across the radio my Mom shouted to me and called me to listen to it. I remember everyone saying it was an accident or freak weather. I went and sat down thinking it wasnt as serious as it would soon turn out to be. 30 Minutes later and my Mom shouted again...a second plane had gone into the towers. We sat down infront of the TV and turned on the news channels. What met us was shocking. Even though I'm a Brit I feel all of your pain. I was deeply shocked that such a thing could happen. This day has so many memories, it also caused so many others. I would like to personally convey my condolances to every American - Human Being*, that has been affected. I feel deeply sorry for all of your loses and pray you ca somehow learn to live your life as normally as possible. To this day I can remember everything crystal clear...I was 14 then, I'm 17 now. Things will change but I will never forget. Matt, 17, UK 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 story10950.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. 2004-09-11 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 81.156.218.199 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 gone to my Mother-In laws house to deliver some pictures to a friend of hers because I am a photographer. As I walked in the door at 8:50 I said "How's it going?". She just looked at me and said "We are under attack." It didn't really register what she was saying to me so I said to her "What?" and she repeated "We are under attack!" I said "What do you mean?" and she went on to explain how something, they thought it was a plane had hit the world trade center and then she took me to the TV to show me what was going on. I couldn't believe it. Just then the 2nd plane went through the other world trade center building. I was in shock. I couldn't talk, I couldn't move, I could only sit there and watch the TV waiting for any explaination of what the hell was going on. I must have stayed there for hours and I never "hang" at my In-Laws house. We hugged and cried and prayed about what those people were going through. Finally I was able to pull myself away long enough to get back to my own house to watch it on TV there. I did nothing for the next week but sit in front of the TV and watch what was happening in our country. The weekend of September 28th, I had a wedding to shoot in Conneticut. I went down on Friday, shot the wedding on Saturday and thought it was great they went through with it and all their family got together for it. Sunday morning I got up and got on the train to head into New York City. I wanted to go to New York to take pictures, to leave a little memorial of my own, and to just leave a little love there. If just wanted to hug people to help them out. I walked from Grand Central Station all the way down to ground zero or as close as I could get. I was one of many doing the same thing. I took pictures along the way. Stopping as I saw Memorials like the one at Washington park. There was so much and so many things left by people it really gave you the sense of just how big this tragity had been. You can't really get that from TV which is why I felt pulled to go to New York since I had the chance because I was so close. Someone had left some chalk by the park so I took it and wrote on the ground "Vermont's Prayers are with New York." I felt very emotional, I cried a lot that day as I walked down to ground zero. As I walked I heard people say It's turning into a freak show people just want to come and see a pile of rubble. It wasn't like that for me. I just wanted to leave some love. People at different areas would argue about what should be done. We should bomb the shit out of them or do nothing at all. I felt like arguing about it was something we should definatelyl not be doing. I just wanted to leave some love. As I was walking I saw some guys putting on a street show flipping and jumping and thinking how great that was they were trying to take people's minds off things and provide some entertainment. I remember thinking how great New York was at that time. When I reached ground zero I was over took at how massive the pile of rubble was. I just stood there and cried, said a prayer, had my own moment of silence, said thank you to some people who were helping and then headed back to Grand Central Station to go back to Conneticut then drive back to Vermont. It was a long way to go but it gave me a lot of time to think and reflect. I felt lucky to be alive, I felt sad all those people had to die and I felt love for everyone I came across. Through that next year I was able to go to New York 2 more times. Once on October 14th Weekend for my 1 year Wedding Anniversary. My husband took me to see the show "Rent" and took me on a Horse Buggy Ride around times square. It was very nice and I loved sharing my love with New York again. We had a good time and it was the perfect Anniversary. I also found out that weekend that we were pregnant with our first child. In March I went back to New York with a couple of friends of mine and her son Christopher. He wanted to go to New York for his birth day. I was getting pretty big but agreed to take them. He loved New York and I was glad I could do that for him. He wanted to leave some love in New York also. We went down to the platform they had set up for ground zero. We signed a flag and left our own memorials there. On May 29th, 2002 the day they were taking the last piece of the trade center out of ground zero I had a beautiful baby girl. Alexis Nicole Anderson, 6pds 11ounces and 19inches long. I felt proud to be able to fill the world with one more soul to replace all the souls lost that September 11th day. Now I'm leaving a lot of love everywere. April Stage Anderson 9/12/02 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 story6196.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. 2002-09-12 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 68.64.66.109 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 doing temp work at the local city and Tuesday, September 11 was to be my last day. We usually kept the TVs in the waiting areas on the weather channel; however, once we found out what was going on we immediately changed to a major network. I remember how shocked everyone was. One of the gentlemen in the office had two sons that were in the service. He kept his head down on his desk most of the day - I think out of fear that his sons would be sent somewhere where their lives would be in harms way. I remember walking out to my car to get something and breaking out into tears over the shock of everything that was happening. I also remember that as soon as the first building fell, that the major ordered the American Flag that flew over City Hall to be be lowered to half mast. The next thing I remember was waking up on the morning of September 12 hoping that it was all a bad dream - unfortunately, it wasn't. I feel bound to the people that surrounded me on September 11, 2001 - I will always remember every single one of them because we shared something that affected each one of us individually and our country as a whole. 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 story3527.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. 159.116.253.177 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 sitting at the UFO meeting (like the PTA) at my son's school, the University School, in Davie, FL. It was the first meeting of the year. I had just dropped off my daughter at her first day of Preschool at the Family Center. I was with my friend, Colleen, when her Mother called on her cell phone, telling her that a plane had crashed into the WTC. We weren't sure what to think. Unfortunate accident? Then my husband called with the same story & the 2nd plane. Do we stay at the meeting? I went upstairs where I Knew there was a tv. The kid working at the snack bar wasn't even aware what was happening, as he had the sound off. It was true, & the pictures were horrific! I first called my friend, Lori, in NYC to find out if she was okay. She was fine, but her husband was supposed to pitch for the Mets that night & had been evacuated from the Laguardia airport. Now she had no idea where he was & couldn't reach him by cell. I just begged her not to let him get on a plane. She had to go get her daughter, as it was her 1st day of school. My next call was to my brother-in-law in San Fran. He was with the FBI. He should know what was going on. I woke him up. He had no idea what had happened. He hadn't been called in yet. Ironically, he had been asking for a transfer to FL & had just been denied the previous day. I went back dowstairs to tell Colleen about the pictures I had seen. Cell phones were ringing all around the room. We were asked to turn them off. The Powers That Be didn't know what was going on. Then the Pentagon - I felt it was time to leave the meeting. I got in my car & immediately tuned to Howard Stern. He was informing us exactly what was happening as he was watching it from his windows. It seemed more real than watching it on tv. I can vividly remember when he interrupted a caller to shout out that the Tower had just fallen, & Robin let out a shriek. I called my husband, & he thought Howard was joking, trying to make light of things. But that was the best part about his show. He was honest with us & stayed on the air for hours & hours just keeping us informed. THANKS HOWARD! 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 story6821.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. 2002-09-12 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 205.188.209.38 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 hurted me so bad to see innocent people loose their lives over something so stupid. How could people be so cruel without thinking of the hurt and angrish of others. My heart goes out to all the family members who lost loved ones to this terrible tragedy. I think this is the time for all citizens of the world to come together in a more meaningful way, and never forget the victims who lost their lives to such a tragedy as September 11. I pray for the family members and hope they can find strength to deal with this in a positive way. God loves you and he promised to take care of you. With much love, Kimberly Thomas 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 story6754.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. 2002-09-12 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 165.252.19.2 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: Like many others, I was moved by the events of 9/11 even though I did not know anyone who died in the attacks. I'm still a very patriotic American who loves my country and abhors any kind of violence, especially the terror that took place that infamous day. I only share my story because of an interesting situation my job presented that day. I worked as a server for a semi-fancy restauant (Mulboons) in downtown Salt Lake City, and we often catered luncheons for different events. On September 11(and 12), 2001 we served lunch for a large group of organizers from all over the world (including many middle eastern countries), who were meeting in preparation for the Olympics which would take place in Salt Lake City a mere five months later. What was interesting was that this group's purpose was to discuss ways to prevent and protect against terrorism during the Olympics. When they came into lunch, many of them knew only the most minor details of what had happened while they were in meetings. I not only served lunch that day, but I also had the dubious task of sharing what little information I had gleaned from the two or three hours I spent in front of the television that morning before going to work. Everyone was very shocked and concerned, but I didn't really see any fear, just resolve. I feel very fortunate to have been witness to not just my neighbors, and not just my country pulling together for strength and support, but my whole 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 story3771.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. 63.80.255.2 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: Yesterday: There's a pounding at my door, then the door is thrown open. It's early. I'm jarred out of sleep and told we're under attack. The only attacks I can think of are the regularly scheduled ant raids on the honey pot or peanut butter jar. Did I have to be awaken for that? Christ, blast the little grease ant bastards with a steady stream of Raidtm. But it wasn't grease ants and had nothing to do with my kitchen. It was New York- World Trade Center, Washington- Pentagon and Pennsylvania- the woods. It was passenger jets. I saw they had blown apart the World Trade Center by, essentially, throwing over a hundred people at it. Those planes smashed into the towers over and over again. Then, the buildings collapse again and again. The less squeamish Mexican station Telemundo shows people jumping out of windows, falling, banging repeatedly against the sides of the trade center as they plummet. Politicians go on TV saying things like "swift retaliation" and "act of war." This is just the beginning. Callers to talk radio shows go through a series of pro-American posturing and then scream about nukes, Afghanistan, Iraq and god knows what. The people that aren't screaming for war don't seem to know what to say. They have the images of Palestinians cheering in the streets. An old lady in rags ululating. Children singing and smiling and jumping up and down in joy. What have these people taught their children? What have they twisted into their own souls? These are people who believe good punishments for women and girls who disobey, show interest in sex, go to school, work or leave their homes without a male relative is imprisonment, torture or death. If these recent terrorist attacks do nothing more than give us an excuse to occupy Afghanistan, after unfortunately blasting it to shit (as if it's better than shit right now), and stop these horrible violations of human rights then I'll go along with the war mongering idiots. I hate to speak for the women of Afghanistan, but really, they'd be better off dead under piles of rubble than living under the rule of the Taliban (controller of 90% of Afghanistan) who despises them solely for their genitalia. I'd happily shoot any male member of the Taliban, preferably after raping him with the muzzle of a double barrel shot gun, and this has nothing to do with our airplanes or big tall shiny buildings. It has to due with my desire to violently violate the human rights of anybody who enforces a system of codified violent human rights violations. It's illegal for women to go to school, get an education and follow it up with getting a job. This makes them nothing more than baby producing slaves one hundred percent dependent on men. The sad thing is the Taliban isn't confined to Afghanistan. Their members saturate the populations of the Middle East, and evidently some of them live here in America. The Taliban is to the Muslim religion what the KKK is to Christianity. And speaking of Christianity, what was President Dips**t doing quoting from the book of Psalms during his oh-so inspiring five minute plunge into mispronunciation? Is this some sort of g.d. Holy War he thinks we're going into? Kill an Arab for Jesus? God bless you. God bless you straight to hell you filthy Mohammed lovin' heathens! I'd appreciate it if god was left out of all this. Their were people of many religions, philosophies and beliefs killed yesterday; let's keep that in mind. 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 story1011.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. 2002-08-13 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 209.178.153.111 Annotation Annotations to this item. Afganistan/Mideast Civil Liberties/Discrimination Foreign Policy Politics and politicians Television Coverage U.S. retribution DOMESTIC 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 corporate recruiter working for State Street Corporation in Kansas City. On September 11th, 2001, I was scheduled to attend a college career fair at Emporia State University in Central Kansas (my alma mater). Just before 8:00 CST, two colleagues and I were in unusually heavy traffic leaving Kansas City. We were checking radio stations fir a traffic report. Never did we find a traffic report, but we did hear something mentioned about a plane crash in NYC. Thinking nothing of it, we turned off the radio as soon as traffic picked back up. When we arrived at the university, sightly more than one hours later, we were greeted at the student union by career fair workers. They were anxious. With shaken voices, they told us all about the tragic news from the East Coast. "New York has been attacked!" It goes without saying, that morning, the career fair was virtually empty of job seekers. Furthermore, none of us recruiters were even thinking about the career fair. We did not have access to a television in the student union, thus all of our information about the unfolding events was learned via radio and word of mouth. Because cell phone service was limited to non-existent that day, the recruiters had formed lines to use the pay phones. Most of the recruiters spent the morning trying to contact his/her corporate headquarters to find out what was going on a home and what to do next. By noon, I was able to contact the receptionist at our regional office in downtown Kansas City. He relayed the message from our manager for us to return to Kansas City, immediately. It turns out that the National Guard had evacuated downtown Kansas City, and everyone was returning home to be with family. It was utter chaos in the heartland, as we drove back to Kansas City. Lines of cars waited to get off the interstate highway to purchase gasoline, prices that had sky-rocketed within a few hours. Radio broadcasts varied with horrifying stories from rumored attacks in the Midwest, rumors of additional strikes being planned across the US, to food and gas supplies running on empty, to the death and chaos on the East Coast, to a war already being planned. The National Guard was being called out in cities like Kansas City, Topeka, Wichita and the like. Finally, I arrived at my apartment in Kansas City in time for the evening news. I turned on the TV and hear the voice of Dan Rather and see the scenes from NYC on the screen. That was the first time I saw the scenes from NYC. I couldn't move. I broke down in tears. Only having a cell phone at home, I was unable to make contact with friends and family. The typically busy boulevard down below was quiet, an unnerving silence. Like many, I felt the world had come to an end. I felt alone. With a bottle of wine and a pack of cigarettes, I sat all evening in front of the TV all night and cried. 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 story10460.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. 2004-03-02 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 204.151.97.186 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 Sept,11, I found out that the Taliban hijacked the plane and drove them into the Twin Towers. My teacher told us about it. He told us two planes crashed into the Twin Towers and killed every one in them. We watched the news for the rest of the day, so I knew all about it when it happened. I felt bad because all the people that died on Sept,11. My life did not change at all from what happned on Sept 11.The reason it did not change at all because I did not know any one that died. It did not bother me that mutch. I felt bad that all the people died. It changed my life every one is more cautious about everything. For example the school has name tags, and they also have the lock down proudure. The thing I think should be rememberd is the Al-Quida hijacked the planes and flew them into the twin towers, and killed thousands of people. 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 story8463.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. 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 the student lounge between classes watching "Good Morning America" when the first reports and pictures of the tragedy were broadcast. I immediately had a suspicion that our country was under attack, being a military man. I was deeply hurt and saddened as the the news reports continued, finally wiping the tears from my eyes and finding hard to swallow. I immediately wanted to help in any way I could. I remained sad for the many weeks following September 11th, 2001 and as the approaching anniversary nears, I still feel that hurt and sadness. I will always be an American, and a proud serving one. I will forever keep those fellow Americans and their families in my heart and my prayers. 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 story6770.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. 2002-09-12 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 63.10.160.93 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 the morning of september 11th 2001, It was just like any other day. I woke up took my shower and all that stuff not even knowing that over 1,000 lives would be takin in less then 3 hours. I went to my gym class and participated as normal and by second hour I relized something wasnt right. I walked into spanish and seen my teacher's eyes in fear and on the T.V I saw in big letters Attack on america. I didnt know what to think but when I see the second plane attack and my teacher go off into tears I knew there was something wrong. After she collected herself she told us that we were witnessing history and that we probally wont see this again as long as we live. I had know clue what was even going on until she explained that we had been struck at by another countrie and that they used our own planes and everything to hurt us. That day will be one of the saddest days witnessed in american eyes. But we still strong high today and we always will. We can never be shut down. We might lose lives, but we will never lose pride. 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 story1754.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. 2002-09-04 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 172.136.14.9 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: This day started as usual for my boyfriend and I; we woke up at 4:45 a.m. to get ready for work and have time for some coffee before we had to be there at 6 a.m.. We got our coffee at the gas station a few blocks down the street from our apartment (this gas station happens to be right across the street from the Governor's mansion), and I made a passing comment that if anyone ever got mad at our governor and decided to bomb him, we would be in a world of trouble. It was a comment that at the time we laughed off. Little did we know what events were ahead of our country that day. We reported to work on time and the morning at the restaurant we worked at went as usual, and at about 8:30 a.m., I went out the back door for a cigarette break. I had my cigarette and came back in and went about my job, and aboput five minutes after I had come in, I hear the volume on the radio go up. Way up. I ran back there to see what was going on, and a co-worker told me that a plane had just hit the world Trade Center. It was on the Howard Stern show, so We all thought "no way, it's Howard Stern, he's pulling a joke of soem kind." I brushed this off rather quickly, and went back to my work area. All of a sudden a woman came bursting through the doors saying that the Trade Center had been hit by a plane. This was the first moment I realized that it was real, and as quickly as I could I served the woman and went back and reported to my coworkers that this was real. By this time the second plane had hit, and we all dropped everything, forgot about our jobs, and crowded around this radio. It didn't even matter that we forgot about working because no customers were coming in anyway; this restaurant was very popular and very busy, and during lunch hours the place was packed. I think we had maybe 4 customers for lunch that day. Back to my story, every single one of us were speechless and could say nothing but "oh my god, oh my god." When we heard about the plane hitting the Pentagon, and planes possibly circling over northern Virginia, my boyfriend and I, especially him, became frantic. His older brother works in washington D.C., and his parents live in a town not very far from D.C.. We were grabbign every phone we could, trying to call his brother and parents, but the phone lines were all busy and we could not get through. This made us even more worried. So we sat at work listening to the radio all day and getting updates on what was showing on t.v. from the occasional customer. My boyfriend and I got off work at 2 p.m. and raced home and switched on the news and kept trying to call his family. The first time I saw footage of the planes hitting the towers I was blown away. To this day, I cannot describe how I felt, as I know those who read this will understand. It wasn't until eleven o'clock that night until we got ahold of my boyfriend's family; his brother, instead of returning to his home, had gone to their parents house as soon as he could. We didn't sleep that night, all we could do was watch the news reports and cry. September 11, 2001 is a day that left memories in my mind and heart that will always be fresh, and that will always make me strive to be a better person for myself and others. I hope that I am living a life worthy to be considered a memeorial to those who died that day. 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 story10557.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. 2004-04-24 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 205.188.116.140 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: As I walked to my building from the subway located on Sixth Avenue and 42nd St., I was thinking about what a beautiful day we were having. I prayed that Jesus would come back soon, as I usually do. When I entered the office at Liberty Mutual Insurance Company - located in the Kodak building on 6th and 43rd, I noticed that my co-workers were looking out the window at some smoke. They had the radio on and I asked what was happening. They told me that the World Trade Center was on fire! We were not able to see the building from our location on the 17th floor, however we did see a lot of smoke. Someone suggested that we watch the television in the conference room. Like most people, we wondered how a plane could possibly accidentally hit the WTC on such a clear day! The next thing we saw was another plane hit the other tower and I said it was a terrorist attack! As we watched in horror, we saw the first tower implode. One of our employees (Debbie) had a sister who worked for Cantor Fitzgerald. She screamed as she watched the tower collapse. I have a friend who works for Port Authority, I started sobbing. I remember another co-worker (Mary) also sobbing. I went back to my desk crying my eyes out thinking about my friend Lorraine Walsh. I kept saying her name. I just knew she could not have gotten out of that building. Everything happened so fast, I just thought that there were thousands of people killed in that disaster. We were hearing reports that there were several planes that had been hijacked and no one knew how many or where they were. I tried to contact my sister who works at Cravath Swain and Moore, a law firm on 8th Ave. and 50th St. She was OK. I told her that one of my co-workers invited me to stay with her in Brooklyn. After a while the phone lines were jammed and we could not make any calls. Our Office Manager decided to let us go and wanted to make sure that no one was alone. We all grouped together outside the office. By that time I knew that the bridges and roads were closed to N.J. My manager's husband had walked up to our office from 7 WTC. He was OK and told us his experience of escaping from the building. So a group of us - my manager - Gerri Fernandes; her husband; Sara Giaimo - the secretary; Mary Gaw - my co-worker started walking uptown to the Queens Midtown Bridge. There were thousands of people trying to get out of the city. We all tried to stay together, hanging on to each other for dear life. Everyone kept making sure that we did not lose anyone. It was very hot. We arrived at the bridge and the police were directing us to walk on the sunny side of the bridge. It felt like a hundred degrees! It seemed like we had walked about 10 miles already. I had no idea where we were going. I was just following the crowd. I felt sorry for Gerri. She was walking in heels. I was so happy that I had my sneakers on. I couldn't imagine how much pain she was in. As we walked over the bridge, we could see the smoke coming from downtown. It was really sickening. People had all sorts of emotions. Some were grieving. Some were enjoying the adventure. When we finally got to the other side of the bridge, Gerri and her husband went on their way. Mary, Sara, and I went to Sara's parents' house in Queens. Her family is from Italy and they gave us some food and water which I delighted to have. We watched TV for a while and waited for Sara's daughter to pick us up and drive us to Sara's house. We were at Sara's house for a while and Sara gave us some wonderful tomatoes from her garden with olive oil and mozzerella cheese. They were fabulous and as usual, I was starving. Then we waited for Mary's brother to pick us up to bring us to Brooklyn. He arrived about 6 and took us to his house. We were there for a while visiting with him. Then he drove Mary and I to Mary's house in Brooklyn. She is Chinese and lives in the China town section of Brooklyn. I met her family, including her grandmother. They made dinner for us. The family spoke Chinese and Mary translated for me. They were Buddhist and had a little Buddhist altar in their dining room with a box for their ancestors remains. I found it very interesting. After dinner, Mary and I watched TV until about 3 AM. I tried calling NJ several times during the night but the lines were still not working. I finally went to sleep. Mary had given me her room. She stayed up and watched TV practically all night. That's all I could think about was Lorraine Walsh, my friend who worked for Port Authority. Lorraine had escaped the first bombing in 1993. I was sure that she did not make it this time but I was dying to know what happened to her. The next morning, I had breakfast with Mary and she walked me over to the subway so I could get back home. The subway from Brooklyn went past downtown Manhattan. There was such a feeling of emptiness there. I had to go to midtown to get transportation back to New Jersey. When I finally got back to Jersey City, where I was staying with my friend Gwen Verdon, I had a chance to call my mother and reassure her that I was OK. I found out that my sisters were OK too. I called Lorraine's house and left a message for her on her answering machine begging her to call me if she was OK. Lorraine had a habit of never returning phone calls. I couldn't believe my ears when I actually received a call from Lorraine telling me she was OK but very emotionally upset about loosing so many of her friends and co-workers. I was so happy she was alive! When I spoke with my cousin Mary about Lorraine, she told me that she was relieved that her brother Richard got out alive too. I didn't even know that Richard worked at the WTC! About a week later, I learned that Al Kappelman, who I knew from the Liberty Mutual International Division had been killed while attending a meeting at the WTC. Then about a month later, I received a notice for a memorial Mass for Deborah Kobus who had been killed at the World Trade Center. I met Debbie when I worked at Sun Life of New York Insurance Company. Debbie was very adventurous and loved traveling all over the world and go skiing. She would often go by herself. She also told me that she was reading the entire Bible from start to finish. She inspired me to start reading it too. When I decided to enter a Monastery, I had asked Debbie to write a reference letter for me. She asked me to help her. We decided to meet at the bar of the Marriott Hotel where she wrote the referral letter for me. She was also there at the Monastery the day that I had entered. Unfortunately, I was asked to leave about a month later. I'm still in mourning for Debbie and Al. I pray that they are at rest with God. I pray that all those who were killed that day are with God, too. 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 story6563.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. 2002-09-12 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 205.188.209.38 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 seemed just like any other September morning then at about 7:50 Central time, my teacher turned on the T.V. and there was a plane in one of the Twin Towers. I was in shock, I couldn't believe that someone could do something like that. I found out more about it, and found out it was a terrorist attack. Everyone was mad, some people even went to the extent of killing Islamic people, which is wrong because it wasn't their fault. I didn't have any family or people that I knew that died in the accident. However, I feel for those who did because that would be horrible. That night, my family was brought closer, and we comforted one another to help each other deal with the attack. The next day at school, everyone was nice to each other, and treated each other with respect. Now, things are back to how they were before, and people are mean to each other. 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 story2093.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. 2002-09-10 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 66.169.170.114 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 work in Jersey City, NJ, directly across the river from the WTC. When the first plane hit, my boyfriend called me to ask me to go to the windows and see if the report he heard was true...that a plane smacked into one of the towers. I took my boss with me and we walked to the windows and saw the fire and smoke and were so scared for those people way up high. Then we walked back to our desks. Then we heard employees screaming and we ran to see what the problem was and our art director told us she saw another plane hit the other one! Well, now we were all terrified because we knew this could be accident. I tried to think of people I knew who worked there and I came up with a cousin. I called my mom and told her what had happened. Then one of the towers fell and building management made the decision to send us home...even though us employees were going to leave anyway. As we were walking to our cars, the second tower fell and I looked at it over my shoulder and yeh, there was black smoke and there was a lot of gray dust, but what I remember most was that rumble as it came down...so loud...so unlike anything I've ever heard before. I looked away and kept walking. My co-worker had gotten down on the floor into a fetal position and I just stared down at her. We walked into the parking garage and I remember feeling vulnerable, like we could be a target. The traffic out of Jersey City was terrible. I thought we'd never make it out of the city. I cried all the way home. My boyfriend worked in NYC (further uptown) and I was afraid he wouldn't be able to come home because they'd shut the tunnels and bridges. My father worked south of Canal St. on Hudson Street and I was afraid for him too. Later he told me he was four blocks away from Ground Zero and his co-worker could see the people jumping from the building. He cried when he got home later that day. I didn't go home...I went to my mom's house. Even though she wasn't home, I got in her bed and turned on her tv and just let it all soak in. I, like everyone, prayed they would find many survivors in the rubble...the reality of what happened was too much to process as we waited and no bodies were found. I didn't go to work for the next three days. I ran out the next day and donated money to Red Cross. I shopped at Target for jeans and shirts for the recovery/rescue workers. I bought some flags. I felt numb. And I tell you, a year has passed and I am still freaked out by the planes that fly over the Turnpike. I am more skeptical of helicopters that fly down the Hudson. 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 story6160.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. 2002-09-12 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 216.35.46.129 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 moms car, and we were an the way to school. I was going in late because I was just at a doctors appointment. Then right as we were coming up to the school, I heard the radio man say that both of the towers of the World Trade Center had been hit by planes. I had no idea what the towers were like. For all I knew, they were like towers at a power plant with no one inside. I remeber hearing my mom say somthing about terrorists. I did not think much of it at the time. Then I got to school and went to the last few minutes of first hour, the whole thing had left my mind. I was now thinking about the extra civics home work I would have since I was gone. Then I went to my next class, which was science. We were giving presentations. In the middle of one the principal came in and asked to see the teacher in the hall. None of us knew what was going on. We did not expect it to be this serious. The thought of what I had heard on the radio earlier didn't even come to mind. When Mr. Christopherson came back in he let the group finish their presentation, then he told us what had happened. Throughuot the rest of the day we say horrible images on the news and in most of the classes we just talked about what had happened. 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 story1927.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. 2002-09-08 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 64.159.101.236 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, I began the day, like any other day. I work nights, so I sleep through most days. I remember singing "This is the Day the Lord Has Made" in the shower. After that, while all hell was breaking loose in America, I was walking my daughter to school. I went straight to sleep after that, unaware of our national crisis. I was awakened by my husband, right at 3pm, as he returned from work. He began telling me about all that had happened. I was numb, and I watched the news for a while. They were talking sporatically about the shock and reactions, but not explaining the videos. All I knew was that one tower was hit, and I thought I was seeing the second being hit live, and nothing was said about it. I finally realized that it had all happened that morning. I knew that the stock markets and everything would be affected, so I began to worry about if were we about to go into financial chaos. My daughter would be getting off the school bus, had she been told? Would life ever be normal again? Could what they said about this all being deliberate be true? How could someone be that evil? Why was the media telling everyone where our president was at all times? How could they be so irresponsible? After a short while, I had to go to Walmart. I was totally amazed that, while they usually have those dinky commercials running on their televisions in the store, every television was on CNN and it was over the store sound system. While I was there, another building had collasped. While I was checking out, people were talking about being charged enormous prices for gas near Little Rock, something like $8 a gallon. I had noticed alot of people getting gas before I'd gotten to Walmart. So I called my husband and told him to fill up the truck, and I did the same with the car on my way home. As time went on, days, weeks, months... I watched the magazines and news shows about all the events related to this disaster. I ached in my heart for all the lost souls and people searching and searching for survivors. I wondered how it could rain in New York so soon after the collapse, how did that affect the searching? I just thought about it all so much. I found a couple of magazines dedicated to the tragedy. I found a story in one that just broke my heart. I might have known one of the children that was on one of the planes... We had lived in several places before my husband retired from the Navy, including San Diego. I had worked at a military child development center. One child's name was China, and I had cared for a little girl named China in the San Diego area. The age of the girl, on the plane added up to how long it had been since we'd been there and the tragedy. I'm not absolutely certain it's her, but it just breaks my heart that anyone, after seeing young children on board an airplane, could still be willing to take over and cause so much death... how callous! I still, today feel a void in my heart concerning these events. This morning, at the nursing home, where I work nights, we tried to dress everyone in red white and blue, and tonight, I'll be wearing those colors as well, when I come in. I saw flags up all down the streets in my town this morning. I've been praying alot today for God's blessings and protection for our nation. I refuse to live in fear! We must live as normal as possible and keep our heads up, or the evil will win. What should have happened didn't. Our flags were put up everywhere, and as the year went on, less and less cars could be found with flags. Many people started attending Church again, but more and more don't go now. We need to be proud and stand up for our country. We need more than that for God's hand of protection for America. I just pray that God won't forsake us, as we have forsaken Him. We need God to bless America again! I'll be praying for just that. Lora Bailey September 11, 2002 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 story4779.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. 209.206.198.181 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: Sept. 11, 2003 I'm sure I looked out the window that morning but is wasn't to admire the blue sky, it was to see what others were wearing down on the sidewalks. I was happy to see that I had at least one more warm day, fall had not yet taken hold. I wore a nice black top, a bright asian print skirt and my nude colored heels. I left the house around 8:20 and passed Tom on the first floor coming back from his run over the bridge and back. "Have a good day" we said to each other. We didn't kiss because he was dripping with sweat and then I was off to Borough Hall to catch the 2/3 to work. I usually look at my watch when I'm getting off the train at 34th so I can determine how fast of a pace I need to set for myself to be at work by 9:00. I don't remember looking but I must have and what ever time it was, I concluded that I could take my time. I walked west across 34th on the north side of the street towards 8th, crossed to the New Yorker and headed north to Intermission Deli where my coffee was ready for me seconds after walking in the door. When I stepped off the elevator on the 19th floor of our office building there was Ben sitting in front of the door. I looked at my watch again, not really paying attention to what time it was, but to what time it wasn't. It wasn't 9:00 yet. Ray was supposed to open because it was Tuesday and Carol has an appointment every Tuesday morning. It wasn't long before Ray arrived and let us in. It must have been around 8:50. I did my usual routine. I walked to my computer, turned it on, put down my bag and headed to the kitchen to doctor up my coffee. On my way to the kitchen the phone rang and I answered it at Charlie's desk. "Ray, it's your mom on the phone" I yelled as I put her on hold and continued on to the kitchen. I hadn't even gotten a spoon out of the drawer when Ray yelled "Shawna, come here....quick". As I rounded the corner and saw Ray and Ben standing at the window I immediately thought that someone had jumped from a floor above. As I rushed closer Ray said that a plane had hit one of the towers at the World Trade Center. I looked south and there it was, a gaping hole in the side of the western most tower. We shot a few questions at each other, "What else did your mom say?" , "How many floors do you think it will effect", "How will they put out a fire that high?", "How could a pilot not see the towers on a day like today?". I called home to tell Tom to take a different subway line since ours runs beneath the WTC. I thought that with all the confusion, it would probably take forever for him to get to work. I was at my desk about to check emails when Eileen walked in. She looked so white and could only say "Another plane just hit the other tower". We all rushed back to the window only to see both towers were on fire and that's when we knew that this was no accident. We watched in horror through teary eyes and then started making mental lists of who we know and where they were. Somewhere in the next 20 minutes Stacey, Marnie, Jim and Scott showed up. Stacey got her little black and white TV out of her office and hooked it up behind Ray's desk. We flipped the little black and white TV back and forth between the only two channels that would come in. One had a decent picture but was in Spanish and the other had a horrible picture but was in english. We all wandered around the office from windows to computers, from the kitchen to the conference area. Stacey came to each one of us in private to ask if we needed anything, to see if we had found our loved ones and if everything is alright. There was no reason for Tom to be in lower Manhattan that morning other than being on the subway so I didn't panic but I was worried. I wanted to talk to him just to be sure. I called home again and left a message. I emailed him at work and told him to let me know as soon as he arrived. I waited about 10 minutes and then called him at work but he wasn't there yet. Suddenly I heard gasps from all around a few "Oh my god" echoed and I jumped up from my desk and ran to the window to see only one tower and then a cloud of smoke moving in all directions. I had been pretty calm until then but all that changed. Did I just see what I think I saw? How could the tower just crumble like that? Would that have collapsed the subway lines below the WTC? Where is Tom? I checked my email again, but nothing from Tom. I answered an email from Staci, my sister, and from Jenny McGinnis and then called home. Through a lot of tears I assured my mom and dad that I was ok and that Tom was bound to turn up at work any minute. They were the ones that told me about the fourth hijacked plane that was still unaccounted for. People in northern WV were watching the skies as they tracked the plane in the area and finally down in Pennsylvania. I promised them I'd get back to them soon, said I love you one more time and then said good bye. Moments later Tom called to say that he was safely at work. Finally a sigh of relief. I had my coffee in hand and was standing at the window next to Stacey when we saw the antenna of the second tower start to sway and then the unthinkable happened. The second tower came down. We just stood there and watched. I couldn't begin to comprehend what I had just witnessed. We were immediately trying to calculate how much time had passed and how long it would have taken to evacuate the area. It didn't take long before we realized that most of the people probably didn't get out. None of us knew how much worse this could get. We heard about the Pentagon and then the plane in PA going down. We all kept glancing out the window at the Empire State Building wondering if that was the next target. They closed off all the bridges and tunnels. The subways were stopped. We we trapped. Someone suggested getting some food and money incase we were spending the night at the office. Marnie and I went together to get some cash and I despertly wanted a change of clothes. Somehow it just felt wrong to be dressed up at a time like this. When we reached the lobby and headed out onto 8th Ave were were engulfed in a sea of people. Every face I looked into had the same distant gaze. The sidewalks were packed and pouring into the streets. Businesses and shops were closing up but the workers had nowhere to go. We heard sirens coming from the south and everything just stopped to see a badly beaten ambulance covered in debris, back doors missing, heading north on 8th. Once it passed we all resumed our trek to where ever it was we were going. Marnie and I walked across 34th to Citibank but there was a sign on the door that said "Closed". We turned around and headed back to the Duane Reade on 8th. We didn't talk too much on the way. We shared a couple of glances but mainly just watched the others on the street. As we were about to cross the street at 8th we heard a sound that just hours before would have gone unnoticed. It was a plane heading south over the island. Every person in sight stopped and watched as it passed overhead. We all knew that the FAA had grounded all flights so we watched and waited for the worst. Nothing happened. We went to the drugstore where I immediately jumped in line to use the cash machine while Marnie grabbed some crackers, tampons, a flashlight and cigarettes. We left and went to Bargain Hunters down the street to try and find me some clothes. I bought a t shirt, mens shorts, socks and flip flops. We headed back upstairs where I was relieved to find that Tom had just arrived and was waiting for me at my computer. After a long tearful hug and kiss I asked where he had been and what did he know. Tom was in the shower when the first plane hit. As he was getting dressed he turned on the TV to hear the news of the "accident". He quickly got his things together and headed down to the promenade to see first hand what was going on. In the time it took for him to get the two and a half blocks to the water, the second tower had been hit. He stood among a growing crowd and took pictures of the two burning towers. After about 10 minutes he headed towards the subway. There were considerable delays so by the time he actually reached work the first tower had already fallen. It wasn't long before Cardinal Communications closed it's doors for the day and Tom walked to my office to be with me. We were all waiting desperately for some news of subway openings. We were ready to head home. Tom and I decided that we would wait another hour or so and then start walking towards the Brooklyn Bridge. I emailed Mom, Dad and Staci that we were going to try to make it home and that I would try and call when we got there. I knew that getting through was going to be difficult but we would try. Around 1:00 they announced that a few subway lines were going to open up, one of them being the A,C,E. We gathered our stuff and headed out together. When we got to the subway station we made our way to the middle express tracks and waited. The crowds kept getting bigger as we waited. We watched as a C train arrived on the local side, packed with people. We waited. We saw an A train approaching the local side so we, along with hundreds of others, rushed down the stairs, across the hall and up the other side to the local track. To an outsider it probably looked like a panicked mob but surprisingly, everyone was calm, just focused on getting on that train. Once the train doors closed and we all looked around at each other, I started to cry. There were people staring out the window into the black tunnels, there were others quietly crying into their hands, there were some covered in dirt and dust with visible scratches and wounds. One thing was universal, no one said a word. Instinctively, as we passed the lower Manhattan stations, we all looked up as though we could see the chaos above us. The doors did not open as we slowed down and passed through the lower Manhattan stops of Canal, Chambers and Broadway/Fulton but we could smell the fires burning. We finally reached High Street stop in Brooklyn and got off. Thomas and I immediately walked down to the promenade only to be greeted by hundreds of others. Most of lower Manhattan was hidden in a dark cloud of smoke and debris that was heading our way. The air was thick with smoke and unfamilliar smells of burning debris and flesh. We covered our mouths but still there we stood. There was a glitter like halo around the entire area, it was office paper floating around catching the sun and then flitting away. We stood and watched for awhile and then headed towards home. When we came into our apartment we were shocked to find that the smoke had followed us home. We immediately closed our windows to try and keep it out but it was too late. Turning on the TV we realized that we had lost all channels except for a barely visable CBS. We changed clothes, into something comfortable and then settled down to watch. We knew that it was going to be a long night so we opted to pick up some chinese and rent a few movies so we could get a break from the coverage. As we were walking down Montegue with our movies and food, something fell from the sky into Toms arms. We looked closer and it was a partially charred page from a financial book...obviously from the WTC. We kept it and went home. The next few hours were long. We couldn't really stand to watch anymore news but we were afraid to turn it off. We watched as WTC 7 collapsed. We watched as they found no survivors. We watched as the mayor spoke to us about being strong. We watched as the experts estimated how long a person could survive in the pile. Thomas and I walked back down to the promenade later that night only to see the smoke eating up the horizon and a steady stream of police, emergency and fire vehicles lighting up the FDR and the bridge. All other traffic was halted. Sleep did not come easy for me. I was exhausted but my brain was in overdrive. I kept replaying the day in my head and then adding in images from TV. Then I began thinking about the view from the planes...the view from the top of the towers, the view from the street. I kept thinking in horror about what it must have been like for them and that kept me awake for hours. I wasn't sure what I was going to do the next day but Tom said that he was going to work. Stacey had told us that she would be there if any of us wanted to come in. We knew we wouldn't get any work done but she felt that some of us would rather be there than be home. She was right. The thought of being home alone all day made me feel sick. Tom and I left together that morning. Our choices of subway lines was limited so we took the 4/5 to Grand Central Station. We kissed goodbye and headed our separate ways at 6th and 42nd. I started walking West and looking for a NY Times. After a block or so I realized how empty the streets were. None of that hustle and bustle that keeps the city going 24/7. When I reached Times Square I was shocked and actually frightened to find that there weren't even a dozen other people in sight other than the uniformed and armed soldiers on each of the corners. I walked slowly beneath the lighted signs and past the store fronts. It was a ghost town. I must have stopped 10 times to find a paper but could only get the Post and Daily News. I cried as I walked slowly and tried to take it all in. This was a first and hopefully a last in my life, to see a city on hold. I reached my office building and knew that no one would be there this early so I went to my coffee shop downstairs to wait. The coffee shop was missing it's usual line of New Yorkers waiting for their caffeine fix for the day. I got to the counter and there were no words, just a nod of understanding, a small cosoleing smile and that was it. I took my coffee and my papers and planted myself at one of the far tables looking out towards the street. It only took a few minutes before I reached a page in the paper that I could not handle. I closed it and cried and then started again. When I finally did make my way upstairs to the office I felt a little better. I felt safer there than anywhere. Being in the same place with the same people somehow made it better. We gathered around the TV set up on the conference table and did brainless tasks such as labeling job bags. We all shared news of others and were all relieved to find that none of us lost anyone particularly close to us. They all knew a friend of a friend who was still missing but I was fortunate..I didn't have that many friends in NYC. The next few days and weeks seemed surreal. There were armed guards everywhere, bomb threats in office buildings all around us. Each day as the subway car would approach lower Manhattan stops it would slow to a snails pace so as not to cause too much vibration above at the pile. Each day the stench seemed to get worse. After about two weeks we were able to open our windows but a faint burning smell was still in the air. People seemed a little nicer, a little more patient for awhile. Not a day would go by that I didn't see a dust covered construction worker on the subway with that look in his eye and just know where he was coming from. Police and firefighters in their best dress were seen all over town going to and from funerals. We all saw them and knew where they were going. The missing signs were up all over the city for months. The candles at the Promenade covered the ground to make a mosaic of wax with wilted flowers mixed in. It was months before the sound of an overhead plane ceased to send my heart pounding and my hands shaking. Each milestone caused an almost paralyzing fear...one week, one month, two months, six months... Tom and I went downtown a few weeks later. The streets were dirt and the only traffic was armed guards and workers on four wheelers and a few police SUVs. I was shocked to look down the street and see that a large frame like portion of one of the towers still stood and beneath it was part of the Borders Bookstore window, still in one piece. The tangled metal looked like splintered wood and garbage. There was nothing recognizable about it other than that window. We walked around and looked at the nearby buildings that were covered in dirt and debris. Many of the stores and buildings had begun to clean their ground floor facades but anything above that was colored a strange gray/brown color. Windows were blown out everywhere. We walked towards the church to find that people had begun hanging flowers and signs on the fence surrounding it. We looked up to see that the trees in the cemetery behind were littered with papers and debris. There was at least 8 inches of dirt and debris covering the entire cemetery so that many of the tombstones were mostly hidden. At the 6 month anniversary I took my video camera and made my way down to the promenade to see the two beams of light being turned on. We stood in silence and remembered. Those two beams of light filled the sky and soothed our hearts. They filled that gap that had been there for 6 months now. For a month I could look out my window and see that light as it disappeared into the sky. On the one year anniversary I took the day off so that I could remember in my own way. I grabbed a cup of coffee and walked down Montegue towards the promenade around 8:45 that morning. When I began my two block walk towards the water there weren't many people out but by the time I was a block away, hundreds of people came pouring out of homes and shops. Construction workers from a nearby site came marching down the middle of the road with hard hats on and a flag in hand. We all gathered in silence as we watched that empty space, each one of us remembering and reliving it in our own way. Around 9:30 I headed towards Ground Zero to take part in the ceremony. I found a place to stand, backed up against a police baracade across from the Burger King on the corner. I had been there many times over the past year but today it was so very different. I listened as they read names of people I did not know. I looked up to the sky in silence as they paused to mark the collapse of the first tower. I waited until I felt like I had had enough and then walked down to Battery Park. I didn't want to go home yet but I didn't know what to do so I almost with out thinking bought a ticket to go out to the Statue of Liberty. There weren't many people out there that day, everyone was at Ground Zero. I walked around in silence. I saw a women with a T-Shirt on that read on the back, "I survived the 96th floor of Tower Two" and people were coming up to her, shaking her hand, huging her and taking her picture there infront of Lady Liberty. I cried on the ride back to Battery Park and then I headed home. Just this past Tuesday I was heading to Macy's when I found myself getting tears in my eyes. I looked around at the people on the train next to me and wondered if any of them remembered what it felt like that day. I got off at 34th and headed directly to Pronto. It wasn't the 11th but it sure felt like it to me. It was a beautiful Tuesday morning. I went to the one place other than my apartment that felt like home and I cried with Marnie. It's now two years later and I've chosen to stay at home and write down as much as I can so I will never forget even though their are constant reminders all around me. There is still a huge gap in the skyline that I had grown to love. There is still a visible police present at all the subways in the city. There is still an uneasy feeling each time I hear sirens in the distance or a plane overhead. When I go through my closet and see that skirt I think of that day. Each year as the seasons start to change and we get one of those beautiful blue skies and cool breezes, I think of September 11, 2001. When friends come to visit and stand at the end of our street and ask, "Where were they", I know what they mean and there we stand, looking at something that is no longer there. ************************************************************************* I remember sitting next to the sculpture in the plaza between the towers with Shannon and Mike while we ate our pasteries and drank our coffees during their first visit in 2000. I remember standing between the two towers and looking up but feeling too dizzy to look for too long. I remember sitting at one of the little cafe tables in the plaza with a bottle of seltzer water one afternoon in 2000 and just watching people pass by. I remember heading to the ticket counter for the observation deck a number of times but turning away and saying, "Maybe another day, the line is too long." I remember teasing Tom each time we came around the corner and saw the Ben & Jerry's in the shopping area beneath the towers. I remember wandering into Papryus during one of Toms eye appointments and buying a sympathy card that I had been searching for for years. I had first seen it in Portland when Mrs. Reppert died and once I sent it, I realized how much I loved the Native American poem that was in it. I searched for years for that poem and found it at the mall in the WTC on August 11th, 2001. I bought it just to keep. I remember I remember that same day, sitting outside on the ledge drinking my coffee as I waited for Tom who was at the eye doctor downstairs. I sat there looking up at the Marriot Hotel and noticed how odd the few open windows looked against the sleek black facade. I remember the huge planters and the concrete benches that decorated the plaza across from Century 21. I remember on September 9th, 2001 listing off a number of options for how Tom and I should spend that beautiful Sunday. The WTC observation deck was one of them but we opted for the cheaper, hassle free option of hanging out on the back deck of Pier 17 and admiring the view of Brooklyn instead. 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 story10139.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. 2003-09-24 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 69.22.244.250 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 got off work at 0730 hrs. I work 13 Victor Tour 1, for NewYork Presbyterian Hospital. Usually my live-in boyfriend, Cesar Escobar, works until 0900 hrs on 19 William, from Battalion 17..Cesar was in refresher that day in Fort Totten. He called me soon after the 1st plane hit...he said "Baby, turn on the TV..a plane hit the WTC" He woke me up, I was foggy..I turned on the tv, and was talking to Cesar when the second plane hit. He was hearing it over the radio..asking me what the Hell was going on...I had no clue...I told him I had to call work..I had to go back in...Cesar told me he was being dispatched to a citybus to go to the "scene". We hung up and I left, I ran to the corner to get a cab to 168th and b'way. I got to Presby and had a "bus" bring me to 68th street..Cornell...Gosh, from there it is so blurry...I remember standing on the parking lot looking at 2 pillars of black smoke... I remember "losing it" because it had been 4 hours and I had not heard from Cesar...All I wanted to do was talk to my Mom and Dad in Canada..but I couldn't get thru...I was told by my supervisors, that they could not let me go down to the "scene"..I was hysterical...So, instead, I worked a transport unit..I brought 7 critically burned patients from Bellevue Hospital to Cornell...only 1 survived..Shortly after, my CSID ( critical stress incident debrief) asked me to help with coffee, food, etc...As mad as I was, it was the best thing he did for me...So I waited,,and waited..for Cesar to call me..anything..I finally got thru to my Mothers boss at about 11:30 pm. I was so glad to hear from someone my Mom knew, I didn't know her...but at that point she was my lifeline...At about midnite or so, I got in touch with my father...I got him on my cellphone at his house in Canada.. He had been sitting in front of the TV since the 1st plane hit...praying..for me..for Cesar..for all of us...I cried, and cried...I hadn't heard from Cesar yet...My father and I prayed together over the phone. We got disconnected, and I was never able to get my family again that day...So I waited...and waited..i had everyone looking for Cesar..giving his shield number to every cop, FF, medic who rolled into Cornell....At about 0930 hrs..24 hrs later..Cesar pulled his car into Cornells' parking lot looking for me!!! My love, my life...I ran out to the carport to meet him...we didn't say much..I just kissed him alot....We went home...I had leftovers from 09-10...we were in a daze..we ate steak and potatoes at 10:30 am....watchin TV in disbelief....Glad to be alive....In Memory...Mario Santoro...Keith Fairben...James Pappageorge.... 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 story1442.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. 2002-08-24 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 152.163.207.188