351 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 sitting in my Microsoft Word class at Potomac Falls High School when suddenly over the intercom the principal instructed everyone to turn the televisions to channel 7 ABC. At first when I saw the burning building with a plane sticking out of it I thought it was just a movie on TV. It wasn?t until we turned to every channel did we realize what was going on. At first the class room sat in shock and then people started freaking out. After an hour when the next plane hit the pentagon is when things started getting ugly. Classmates were being pulled out of class to go home, students were demanding to leave, and teachers wanted to make phone calls. After a few hours of watching TV the principal came on the intercom and told everyone to turn off their TVs and return to normal. Needless to say no one returned to normal. Everyone around me was talking about how they were afraid that bombs would start dropping or how schools would be the next targets, I just sat in silence. I couldn?t understand how hijacking a plane and flying it into buildings made any sort of statement at all. Only cowards would do such a thing. After school I went to my best friend?s house and decided to crash there for the night. We talked about what we thought was going to happen the next day. Neither of us was scared but we just had that uncertainty of what was to come. The next morning school was canceled so we slept in. When I finally woke up I went out on the balcony and listened. Not a noise was to be heard, and that was unusual for where I live. I live about twenty minutes away from the Dulles Airport and there is always air planes flying by. But there were no air planes in the sky, or many cars on the road, or people on the street. Just people in their homes uncertain of what was next. 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 story9529.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. 2003-09-10 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 152.163.252.131 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 working with reading groups in my 4th grade classroom that morning when the school secretary came in and whispered to me. There had been a plane crash into one of the trade center buildings and the Pentagon was on fire. I looked at Liz in disbelief. Was she sure this wasn't some cruel joke? The other reading teacher and I tried to digest this, and get through reading groups with our news-unknowing students. A few minutes later, Liz came in with news of the second plane hitting the trade center. We teachers and aides were abuzz with what could be happening. It was difficult to summize with no way to see the news in front of the students. I worried secretly in front of my students that day, and openly in front of my peers, of what had happened and what was yet to come. Rushing home to a TV to piece together the horror, and I watched and cried along with the rest of the nation. 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 story4346.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. 152.163.188.6 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: THE MORNING OF SEPT 11,2001 MY 2 YEAR OLD DAUTHER HAD A DR.S APPT. I GOT HER READY THE TURNED ON ELMO FOR HER. I GOT IN THE SHOWER. MY CAR RADIO DIDN'T WORK, SO I STILL KNEW NOTHING. MY MOTHER WORKS AT THE DR.S' OFFICE SO IT WAS NOT UNTILL AROUND 10:30AM THAT I FIRST HEARD ABOUT THE ATTACKS. AFTER I WAS DONE THERE I RUSHED TO MY MOTHER IN-LAWS HOUSE. WHEN I GOT THERE AND SAW THE TV WAS WHEN IT REALLY HIT ME WHAT WAS GOING ON. BUT, IT WAS NOT UNTIL MY 2 YEAR OLD SAW THE PLANE (WHICH SHE LOVED PLANES, SHE HAD JUST GOTTEN BACK FROM CALIFORNA)SHE WAS SO HAPPY WHEN SHE FIRST SAW THE PLAN, THEN WHEN THE PLAN IT THE SECOND TOWER SHE GASPED FOR AIR, THE TURNED TO ME WITH TEARS IN HER EYES AND ASKED ME TO KISS THE BOOBOO THAT THE PLANE HAD MADE. ALL I COULD DO WAS HOLD HER AND TELL HER THAT MY KISSES WOULD NOT FIX THIS PROBLEM. THE HARDEST THING I HAD TO DO WAS GO TO WORK AT 2 AND LEAVE MY BABY NOT UNDERSTANDING WHAT WAS GOING ON AND WHY I COULDN'T FIX THIS PROBLEM. WHEN I GOT TO WORK AS I WAS GOING INTO THE STORE A LITTLE GIRL AROUND THE AGE OF 5 AND HER DADDY WHERE COMING OUT. HE WAS EXPLAING TO HER THAT THE HAD TO MAKE SURE THERE WAS NO CARS COMING SO THAT THEY DON'T GET HIT. SHE TURNED TO HER DAD AND SAID,"WE HAVE TO LOOK FOR PLANES TOO DADDY, WE DON'T WANT TO GET HIT BY THEM LIKE ALL THE PEOPLE IN THE BULIDINGS." IT WAS THEN THAT I SAW MANY CHILDREN LOOK LIKE GROWN ADULTS WHEN I LOOKED INTO THEIR EYES. I AM 22 YEARS OLD NOW 21 AT THE TIME AND I JUST DIDN'T UNDERSTAND WHY THINGS WHERE THE WAY THEY WHERE. I WAS ANGRY, THEN SAD FOR THE ONES MISSING. IT WAS NOT RIGHT THAT THE ONES WHO USED OUR PLANES TO KILL OUR PEOPLE WOULD NOT HAVE TO PAY. FROM THAT DAY ON I LOOKED AT LIFE MUCH DIFFERENT. I TOOK TIME OUT OF MY DAY TO HOLD MY BABY AND TELL HER I LOVE HER. YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN YOUR TIME WILL BE OVER, SO WE ALL NEED TO TAKE THE TIME TO TELL OUR LOVED ONES HOW MUCH THE MEAN TO US. AND HELP THOSE WHO ARE A LITTLE LESS FORTUNATE. WE NEED TO STOP FIGHTING WITH PEOPLE BECAUSE OF THE COLOR OF THEIR SKIN, BECAUSE ON 9/11/01 THE WORLD SAW WE REALLY DO BLEED THE SAME. I'M NO BETTER THEN ANYONE ELSE. LIFE IS TO SHORT TO FIGHT ANYMORE. MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND YOURS. REMEBER THE SAYING THEN FOLLOW IT, "STOP AND SMELL THE ROSES." 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 story5022.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. 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: I was in the kitchen making my son a bottle when my dad came in and told me "there's been an accident", I went and looked just as the first tower was coming down I couldn't believe my eyes. For 2 straight weeks my eyes were glued to the tv watching for the latest news. I hope they catch Osama-Ben-Stinky and bomb the heck out of that piece of crap!!!!!! I hope the devil gets him by the beans and twists and twirls and wrenches!!!!!!!! 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 story1925.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. 206.25.48.213 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 took my usual drive to the office from Detroit to Livonia, Michigan. Upon entering the building, the switchboard operator asked if I had heard anything on the radio about a plane hitting the World Trade Center. I had not heard anything that morning because I had chosen to listen to a CD instead of turning on the radio. When I ascended to the second level of our building, I noticed the noise from the television and there was a made rush of people to get to the lunchroom area. All of us stayed glued to the television in unbelief as the events of September 11 continued to unfold. That day wound up being a very nonproductive day at our office as well as the next day. A grief counselor was brought in because some of us were experiencing problems from what we had seen and heard. Although we were not in New York, Pennsylvania or Washington, DC, we all felt their pain and grief. We became a nation touched by grief. I later found out that a very dear friend of my sister's had recently moved into the new offices on the side of the Pentagon where the plane hit. All of our lives have been touched in one way or another, either directly or indirectly by the unforgettable horric events of September 11. If we learned nothing else from what happened, we all should be kinder and more loving towards each other on a daily basis and not wait for a tragic event to bring this county together. 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 story2574.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. 192.28.2.52 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: September 11 On September 11 I woke up like I always do. It was the same routine I do every day, eat, get dressed, and brush my teeth just like the day before. As I was about to leave I heard my older brother shout to my mom. I couldn?t understand what he said. I walked back to say bye to my mom. I entered her room and say her crying. She saw me and called me over. I asked her what had happened. She hugged me and told me that a plane had hit the World Trade Center. Tears were forming in my eyes as I watched one of the towers fall. I saw and heard people running and screaming I saw them dying. Later I heard on the news that it was a terrorist attack. My Dad said to remember the name Osama Bin Laden because he changed history forever. 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 story2916.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. 163.150.15.187 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: FOR SOME UNKNOWN REASON I GOT UP EARLY THAT DAY AND CALLED MY SISTER,WHO LIVES IN SCOTLAND...SHE IS THE ONE THAT TOLD ME THAT THE TOWER HAD BEEN HIT. I IMMEDITELY TURNED ON THE TV JUST IN TIME TO SEE THE SECOND TOWER GET HIT...MY SISTER SAID THERE WERE MORE PLANES CRASHING..I BEGAN TO PANIC, FOR MY DAUGTER HAD JUST LEFT THAT MORNING FOR HER HONEYMOON..AND I DIDNT KNOW WHAT PLANE SHE WAS ON. I STARTED CALLING PEOPLE TRYING TO FIND OUT WHAT PLANES WERE EFFECED.....IT WASNT UNTIL 9:30 THAT NIGHT THAT I HEARD FROM MY DAUGTER...SHE WAS ALRIGHT AND IN SOUTH CAROLINA, THAT IS WHERE THEY MADE HER PLNE LAND....I CANT IMAGINE WHAT IT WAS LIKE FOR THE FAMILIES OF THE PEOPLE IN THE TRADE CENTERS OR THAT WERE ON THE FLIGHTS THAT CRASHED..I KNOW FOR ONE BREIF MOMENT I WAS TERRIFIED THAT MY DAUGHTER WAS ONE OF THEM.....MY HEART GOES OUT TO ALL THE FAMILIES THAT LOST LOVED ONES..I WILL NEVER FORGET, GOD BLESS EVERYONE OF THEM.......ANNE 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 story3126.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. 152.163.188.6 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I remember sitting in English class on a day that started out like any other Tuesday. Suddenly, the principal at my high school came rushing into the room and began to whisper to the teacher. Immediately, my English teacher turned on the radio. I listened as the news reported the crashing of a passenger plane into one of the World Trade Center Towers. At first, along with many other students in the class, I thought that the events could not possibly be real. We had just finished listening to ?War of the Worlds? the previous day. I thought my English teacher had somehow staged this broadcast, to place the class in the minds of the people who had originally listened to that program so long ago. Much of the U.S. population once thought ?War of the Worlds? was a real occurrence, and the consequences were dire. Unfortunately, the events wore on, and the radio reported that both of the towers had fallen. Once I arrived at my next class, and saw the report on television, I knew it was real. More than anything, I wanted to go home. The events of September 11 made me realize how everything can be so unimportant in that instant of horror when something is terribly wrong. With the acts of one group, the American people can no longer feel safe. Our vulnerability in skyscrapers and airplanes is painfully clear. Regardless of the number of precautions that are taken to prevent a tragedy such as the events of September 11, if a person or group with enough power wants something to happen, it will. Due to this unsettling truth, the American people must give up some of the civil liberties on which this country was founded, and it sickens me. 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 story1544.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. 2002-08-29 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 64.24.238.107 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 am a broadcast journalist. After four grueling days and sleepless nights, I wrote down my thoughts about what I had experienced. As a journalist, sometimes your personal feelings are put aside so you can better focus on the story. But these feelings would not stay put aside and it wasn't until I wrote them down that I was finally able to come to grips with the tragedy. The following is my personal not professional account... I am having a hard time trying to understand my feelings. At moments I am torn between sadness and rage?loss and hope?fear and joy! Tuesday?September 11, 2001?it started just like any other day. I had been away from the office for a few days but was feeling pretty good. Suzanne and I have begun the process of refinancing our mortgage in the hopes of saving money and after a number of meetings and calls over those five days we seemed to have a pretty good handle on where we going and how well we were going to do. So?getting back to work with that knowledge on my mind?I was feeling pretty good. The moment I saw the pictures of Tower One on fire this knot in my gut tightened. Something didn?t feel right. My god?it was a perfectly clear day?visibility for miles. How could a jetliner with sophisticated navigation equipment go so far off course? Barring a catastrophic failure how could this happen? Immediately we shifted gears from our Washington focus to begin planning how to cover what we believed to be a tragic accident. On the phone to staff?I began alerting everybody what was ahead. And then the unthinkable happened! Another jetliner?this one clearly visible to the world thanks to the countless numbers of television cameras trained on Tower One banked toward Tower Two?in a deliberate act of destruction. The explosion and fireball reminded me of all those Bruce Willis ?Die Hard? movies where I marveled at how the special effects could make such a ludicrous concept look so real?only this time it was. I stood there stunned?unable to move?unable to speak?with numbness settling in and in an instant I realized this was no tragic accident. I have seen death before?and have covered tragic accidents. This was more than that. I just watched hundreds of people perish and only now in my clarity of hindsight do I realize the real tragedy was just beginning. I came to and regained my sense of where I was and what I had to do. Everybody and everything was in play now. All of our crews were being sent to New York to cover for the broadcast group. Our New York affiliate was in way over its head and normally where it would be obliged to cover for the group?the pictures on the monitors told us there was no way. At this moment?we had a chance to assess our decisions. People were being sent home to pack for travel to New York. Freelancers were being hired?satellite trucks were being ordered to locations from other affiliates in nearby cities. This is the mundane side of broadcast journalism. These are the moves that have to be made in order to cover a major story. It never occurred to any of us that this story was not over yet?we didn?t think about the possibility that other planes were in the air and targeting the very institutions we work in daily. We proceeded on the assumption that New York was the story and we were on our way. And then it all changed. In a second?life in the city we have come to love became very different?forever altered. The Pentagon was hit! Broadcast reports said a jetliner had slammed into the side of the building and a fire was raging. People were running out of the building for their lives?many had been badly burned?some dazed?others untouched but confused and still others devoted to their training staying to help those who couldn?t help themselves. Now what do we do? In life there comes a defining moment where you have to choose. This was one of those. The pictures said go to New York?but my instincts screamed NO! Yes the World Trade Center had been savagely attacked?but in the coldness of my thinking?these were civilians. Now our government institutions were under attack?our nation was vulnerable and at risk and in a split second I realized how my parents must have felt when they heard the first words about Pearl Harbor. Reports of threats to the White House and the Capitol came pouring in. I grabbed a photographer and headed to the Capitol?but not before diverting one of our New York crews to the Pentagon. The President was in Florida?so for the moment the White House was not a major concern. When the Pentagon was hit?the President ordered all commercial planes to land?yet there was still one more flying bomb in the sky and it was headed for Washington. The White House was evacuated. The Capitol too. Members of Congress were huddled together and shipped to a secure bunker?this was the frenzy of the aftermath. We did not know when or if another attack was coming but from what we had witnessed already?it seemed likely. Federal workers were sent home. Schools were ordered closed and kids dismissed. Parents went home too?leaving jobs that suddenly seemed unimportant. The streets filled with cars and people going in every direction. Few had any idea what was happening. Many saw or heard about New York?but few in Washington knew about the Pentagon or the threats elsewhere. As the streets clogged?people panicked?but some were mystifyingly oblivious to what was going on around them. Gridlock! We are not moving. I work ten blocks from the Capitol but in an hour I hadn?t traveled but halfway. My phone wasn?t working well. I kept trying to call staff that I hadn?t reached. I called the office. I called numbers at the Capitol. The calls wouldn?t go through. I called home and got through. I left messages on the machine. A woman in a car next to me heard me get through to my home. Her phone wasn?t working. She asked me to call her husband?Frank was his name. He was just home from surgery and would be worried about her. I got a hold of Frank and told him his wife was fine and trying to make her way through the traffic. Frank was grateful. He thanked me for the call. Frank it seems is in law enforcement and was beside himself in frustration because this is what he does. Frank asked me what I do and I told him. His last words to me were ?be careful.? We aborted our mission to the Capitol. It was safe?locked down?a perimeter set up that kept people and vehicles including us more than two blocks away. Now we needed to be someplace where we could tell our story. My photographer and I got out of the city because travel through it was impossible. We made our way to Georgetown via the beltway. In Georgetown?our DC broadcast affiliate has its studios on a hill overlooking the Potomac River. It was the perfect location to see the entire area of action. We began broadcasting from the roof?the flames and smoke billowing out of the Pentagon just over my shoulder. The smell of soot and water soaked construction debris filled the air. The fire burned all day and into the night. The reports kept coming to me in my ear. Horrible stories of desperate people leaping to their deaths because they had no hope of rescue. The fourth plane down in Pennsylvania?perhaps due to some heroics by passengers who knew the death and destruction that had already occurred?the collapse of both towers?the entombment of hundreds of firefighters trying to get to the floors above?the twisted metal and ash and body parts. I have seen death before but not like this. My days have been long and exhausting. Adrenaline gets you through most of them. But there is something it can?t do. It can?t wash away the memories?it can?t erase the fear I have about what is ahead. I feel a great sense of loss?perhaps innocence lost. The things I took for granted have different meanings now. On Friday evening?I took great comfort in a seemingly innocuous event?spotting the first airplane in the sky that wasn?t a military fighter jet. I watched it silently for minutes?pleased that things were getting back to normal but also fixated on the plane?wondering where it was going and if it would get there?. 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 story1616.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. 2002-08-31 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 68.52.170.9 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: well all i want 2 say is that when i first heard the news about the attacks, i thought it wouldnt be a strong attack untill i opened the t.v on any channel and watched the live events, i didnt believe what iv seen, it was like a movie or something.. i also thought it might just be a plane crash accident but when the 2nd plane appeared in picture it was clear now what we were really seeing, all i can say is that who did these attacks hates america more than anything, and has enough courage 2 face his destiny, in the same time he has no goal in life and probably wishes death with no fear as life for him wont worth living, but what makes me real sad is that the american passengers in the hijacked plane should have had more courage as we see there actors brave in movies.. they should have stopped the hijackers by force, even if these hijackers had any kind of weapon, 4 or 5 might die but atleast better than thousands, if there r 10 hijackers and 300 people unarmed they can still stop them however lives they may lose, also breaking the 1 window glass beside any seat makes the plane lose its balance so what if more than 1? this could have made the pilot fail 2 control the plane and direct it 2 the towers, so they could have just broken the window glasses of there seats even if it would cost them their lives, all this could have been done atleast when they saw themeselves heading towards the 2 towers which will make them guess what will happen next.. the planner of these attacks has an enormous mind 2 think up of such a plan which means that he's not a rookey. I never believed the towers may collapse i just thought the damage could be repaired and everything would go back 2 normal and im still not satisfied with their collapse..maybe there was another explosion ir something. i really wished in my whole life that i could stand on the top of the towers and watch the above view. i think the fbi should have worked harder in detecting such acts especially that it had been planned for from atleat 2 or 3 years.. at the end id like 2 say that its not just important 2 know who beated u but its more important 2 know <why> did he beat u.. if america didnt find the people responsible for these attacks then atleast its easy for her 2 know why was she attacked. and as for the war against terrorism which was in afghanistan well, a lot of innocents died and a lot money was paid for rockets 2 blow up tents and small houses, and the end america didnt still know for sure if benladen was responsible or not, america didnt know who killed kenedy or diana untill now so how could she know for sure in a couple of days that it was benladen? haistiness never solves a secret and wars never solve a problem.. thank u.. 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 story8962.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. 2003-01-16 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 62.114.166.6 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: On September 11, 2001 I entered Staples to buy a few things, while I was shopping I heard a loud bang, but did not think anything of it. Someone walks in the store and said that a helicopter crashed into the World Trade Center. When I went outside I saw Tower 1 on fire, as I was standing there I saw a second explosion, at the time I did not know what was going on. Everyone panic and ran, I was so scare that I ran all the way to work. When I arrived at work it was about 10:00 a.m., a few minutes later that's when the first Tower callapsed. The debris and all the smoke engulfed the entire Wall Street area. I was so afraid that I called my mother and told her to take care of my daughter because I did not know if I was going to make it of Wall Street alive. That day I walked almost 4 hours back home. It was a very terrifying day for me and others. I will never forget the images I saw that day, for they will always remain on my 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 story396.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. 2002-04-12 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 205.188.200.36 Annotation Annotations to this item. Struggle to get home WTC, attack NY:2 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: My English class started at 8am I was in class studying when a security guy came and told us we should avacuate the building at once. With him not telling us what has happened, I and my friends began to walk slowly. When I got out side I saw the first plane in the building. What came to my mind was tourist attack. In stand of my going home i began to search for my friends. I saw one girl friend of my, whome i was talkiing and heard the building collaping. The caps and everybody was runing to my side of the street. The girl I was with run away an couldn't find her. I run toward the pleace why the caps were coming. Than I uncounter big and huge debris. I was runing for my life, but couldn't fast because of my book bag and my boot that i am wearing. The debris almost cought up to me. My heart was pounding soo fast that i couldn't hold my breath. What kept me runing was I can't die here, my friend, family and love once will be devastated by this. I walked from Chambers to the Bronx 173 on grand concourse. 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 story482.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. 2002-05-01 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 207.127.206.23 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: My father-in-law pounded on the bedroom door and told me to get up and look at the TV. I saw smoke and buildings but still wasn?t sure what I was looking at. Slowly it occurred to me that some kind of a disaster had taken place. I recognized the World Trade Center engulfed in smoke and asked my father-in-law where the other tower was. That?s when it hit me that there was no other tower. I ran to the TV and shouted, ?Where is it! Where is it!?? Then the other tower collapsed. Within a few minutes my phone started ringing. Friends and relatives who usually called to talk about their relationship problems were frantically asking me why this happened. I had no idea. I had seen footage of Israeli tanks in the West Bank the night before and thought that this was probably some form of karmic payback, but I didn?t really know. Since I was a contractor who billed by the hour I decided to go to work. I passed someone on the sidewalk who looked as frightened as I was. He mumbled something about there not being many people out on the street and I agreed. No one at the office was doing any work. People were confused and talking. I called my wife in Los Angeles and told her not to fly back to San Francisco. I would drive down there and pick her up. Then I called my girlfriend in Brazil and mostly listened. She exclaimed repeatedly that the terrorists were stupid and that all they did was kill a lot of people. She mentioned all of her friends in New York. She said the word ?stupid? again and again. My girlfriend was a leftist with no real love for America, but for now al l she felt was sympathy and revulsion about what had happened. More friends continued to contact me and some asked me why other countries hated us so much. I referred them to various Web sites that could explain the results of America?s foreign policy better than I could. At this point I was convinced that we would be in a state of war for the rest of my life and my children?s lives. More to the point I was certain the world was going to end. Downtown San Francisco was largely abandoned. As I parked the car I heard the Mayor of New York describing the catastrophic loss of policemen and firemen. When asked how many had died he said, ?too many?. I went to a massage parlor that I used to frequent a long time ago. After I signed in and was lead to my room, my masseuse made a perfunctory remark about the terrible thing that had happened and got down to business. Here, it seemed was one part of the world that would never change under any circumstances. When we were finished, I showered, got dressed and went to another massage parlor. Later when I was walking home I heard an airplane in the sky for the first time that day. It was a small plane that made tight little circles over San Francisco. When it passed overhead I saw the glowing afterburners and realized it was a fighter jet. When I entered the apartment, my in-laws were cooking dinner. They discussed the day?s events briefly but didn?t seem too preoccupied with them. They were war refugees and none of this was new to them. As time passed my own mood toward and perception of these events changed. For a while I tied a flag to my car to show my support for the country and for the victims. As the flag wore away I made plans to replace it, but things soon changed. By this time, it seemed that everyone was trying to co-opt 9/11. The president used the events to declare himself infallible and to push through some worthless defense contracts that would make his friends richer. Movie stars held benefits that focused on themselves. Journalists quickly switched from meaningful investigation to repetitive jingoism. Untalented writers slapped 9/11 on their manuscript titles and rammed them through to publication. An array of ordinary citizens claimed that they were special or that their point of view was indisputable because of their proximity to the towers or because of a friend?s or relative?s proximity to the towers. When America slipped back to its old opportunistic ways I found that as much as my heart bled for the victims and for all the rest of us, I could not bring myself to replace that flag. 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 story499.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. 2002-05-02 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 148.87.1.170 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, MY MOTHER AND I WERE ON HER BOAT AT MONACAN PARK. IT WAS WARM AND WAS A BEATUIFUL DAY, I WANTED TO LISTEN TO THE RADIO, SO I TURNED THE RADIO ON AND ALL YOU HEARD ON THE RADIO WAS "WE HAD BEEN ATTACKED" , "PLANES HIT THE PENTAGON". IT WAS TERRRIBLE!!! I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT. MY MOTHER IS A CHRISTIAN AND SHE STARTED TELLING ME THAT THE WORLD WAS COMING TO AN END. I WAS SCARED I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK. BY THE TIME WE GOT HOME OF COURSE THE NEW'S HAD BEEN SPREAD ALL OVER THE RADIO AND TELEVISION. I BLAME THE GOVERNMENT , THEY KNEW WE WAS GETTING ATTACKED, AND NEVER DID ANYTHING ABOUT IT. WE ARE SUPPOSED TO BE AMERICA, OUR GOVERNMENT IS CRICKED. THEY DIDN'T MAKE SURE OUR PEOPLE WAS SAFE WHEN THEY KNEW AN ATTACK WAS COMING. 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 story3432.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. 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: Our remembrances of 9/11 is that we were traveling up the east coast and had only a few days earlier toured the Naval Base in Norfolk, Va. We had an uneasiness on 9/10 and decided to head for home (Lou.Ky) We spent the night in Va. and around 8:30 on 9/11 headed for home. We stopped at the Va., WVA., welcoming center to use the facilities...that is how we found out we had been attacked. We were frantic to get home. Our grown kids were calling us,wanting us home. All we had was the radio to inform us and the images we had in our minds was horrifying. While in the mountains of W.Va. we saw planes overhead after hearing that none were supposed to be there! We drove straight through without stopping except for gas where we heard that Camp David had been hit. We finally got home around 5:00 pm. Since then we have found it hard to travel anywhere as we are so fearful of not being home should we be attacked again. Thanks for the opportunity to express my memories of that terrible day and to express my gratitude for our family and all our countrymen, but most of all to our God. The Augustines, Louisville, Ky 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 story1047.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. 2002-08-18 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 205.188.197.164 Annotation Annotations to this item. Premonitions/Coincidence/Fate Religion Rumors 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 Just going into work when People came up to me and asked if I heard what had happened.I was in such shock when they told me ,All i thought about was my family .My husband Had left for a business trip the day before and was in a very tall building and My step brother is a pilot for one of the airlines that were involved and I couldn't help wondering if he was working that day. 9/11 is the day that Iwill never forget and i am sure that no one will .I have been in touch with family more .I was so relieved that all my family and friends were safe but as we all know we don't know want will happen any time so we should make the most of our lives while we can..... 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 story3228.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. 152.163.188.6 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I am a teacher in high school and in college. Enclosed you will find some happy stories. You may read the first one at: http://nysut.org/newyorkteacher/index.html (October 10 edition - Letters to the editor) 9/11: Yearbook?s prophetic words become a prayer As the towers of The World Trade Center began to collapse, my thoughts turned to those who were dying right there and then. I imagined the two buildings to be like those flowers that close at night, engulfing the thousands of lives that one day -I am sure - will become the seeds of a new time in our history. The events unfolded in front of me, in the company of my students. As the buildings fell I started to ask God, to beg Him, to demand of Him, that everyone around the area should be pushed as far away as possible from there. Suddenly I realized that one of those could be John, one of my former students. He had given me his business card with the World Trade Center as his address. Now my prayer was more personal. I kept asking God to push John to safety along with everybody else. The day moved along according to the news heard hour after hour after hour. Time didn't matter that Tuesday. I kept praying all day long, hoping to hear that everyone had been evacuated before the collapse, and wondering why in my mind the word "push" had been repeated so many times. After hugging my wife and my two sons that afternoon I looked out my bedroom window. Our Twin Towers were no longer there. I wanted to write a poem. Words failed in the attempt. Now I was on a mission: I needed to find John. The first place to check was the yearbook of his high school graduation. I stared at his photograph, said another prayer, and looked up the names of classmates who could give me information about him. Next was the Internet. I e-mailed as many former students as I could, called others on the phone,went to the Web site of the high school, posted a message for all alumni to read, and waited for replies. Over the next couple of days I did receive answers from several people, but no information about John. No one had his phone number either. Twice I called the emergency information number for the company where he works. They could only tell me that there had been contact with him. Hospitals did not have his name. Finally after a few days I was able to get in touch with the mother of one of his classmates who gave me John's phone number. He was alive and well. I thanked God, made the phone call, and spoke with his mother. He was visiting and consoling his girlfriend. Her father was among the missing. Later that evening I spoke with John. There were tears, moments of silence, and my question: "How did you leave the area?" His answer was: "I was literally pushed by hundreds of people fleeing the place. I knew that my girlfriend's father and others close to me were inside the building. People kept pushing me away and inside a subway station, where I took an uptown train. On my way out of the disaster area I began to reflect on the tragedy, and I thought about the quote I wrote to you in the high school yearbook. Have you read it lately?" I opened the year book to his page and read: "Thank you for pushing me, even when I didn't want to move." One intellectual push in high school, one spiritual push away from death. Miracles do happen. John was my student in high school. He graduated in 1993. 10/11: A ?suspicious? envelope from England I Got a "suspicious" envelope: Oversized, from England, no sender, two types of writing and of ink...... Rosa, my wife, said to me: "You have two choices: Call the FBI or bring it to the precinct." I sent my family to the living room, put on my cleaning, blue rubber gloves, industrial goggles, surgical mask....I opened the envelope, got seven papers out with Rosa's tweezers....." Good, no anthrax. But is it possible that I might be the one to deliver messages from terrorists to Bush, the Mayor, and....?" I Read the first one and started to cry; then the second, and the third......... They were letters written by children from Surrey, England. Their teacher had read "The Yearbook Quote" to them, and they decided to tell me that more than ever they now believed in the power of prayer, and that I should write back. I did. I sent them letters with photos of sunsets, and of course with the World Trade Center in all its glory. To the teacher, Mrs. Marian Rose, I sent a photo of two sunsets: One taken on Monday, September 10 (How beautiful and special that one was), and the second one taken on Tuesday, September 11 (Smoke traveling south for miles, that gap, that void, all those souls......). If only those nice kids and their teacher had seen me dressed as an extraterrestrial as I opened their beautiful notes. 11/11: John Lentini?s reply to my students? letters addressed to him Querido Juanito, what a beautiful letter you have written to my students. I remember how well you used to write in high school. This is a masterpiece! I can't wait to read it in all my classes next week. When all is said and done, what really matters is how we love and help each other. Those students have contributed a bit by sharing their thoughts and feelings with you. And you know how proud I am of you. I am inspired by your fortitude of spirit, and by your courage in helping others who are suffering as much as you. I used to tell your class that I always try to learn from my students. Thank you for teaching me the value of time spent with loved ones and of being grateful for every moment of my life. And the latest is the following; Last week I went to get a haircut. Joe, the barber, was concerned about me: I had not been there since the beginning of September. They had lost three clients at the WTC. As he began his routine, his conversation went like this: "There are nice stories also. You'll appreciate this one because you are a teacher. One of my clients came here a few weeks ago. I asked him why he wasn't working. He replied that his office had been located at the WTC. That Tuesday, September 11, one of his very close friends went to the office while he went to the gym. When he came out, ready to go to work, he was PUSHED by hundreds of people........." I don't know if Joe finished what he was doing, because I jumped out of the chair and yelled: "My student, John". I ran out to my car to get the 1993 yearbook. I needed to show him proof of why I was on the verge of tears. Tears of joy, of unity, tears that wanted to translate the emotions that all Americans are feeling for one another ever since that Tuesday. I happened to have the book with me because I had taken it to school. The librarian had printed the article for another publication and wanted to scan that page of the yearbook. Joe, Frank, his son Frankie, everyone at the barber shop were speechless. I think I paid for my haircut. I left that barber shop on Union Turnpike with a very special joy in my heart. Juanito: My prayers and thoughts are with you. Let me know how you are now, and if there is anything you need. Un abrazo de tu amigo Alberto. Thanksgiving 2001: A note to all who had lost loved ones before 9/11 Our human minds, our human feelings, our contact with time and space, our sadness, our fears and anguish...They all contribute to a very limited vision of something more important: A plan that has been designed without human words, without calendars, without anything imperfect. One day God, Omniscient and Eternal, decided to take George, my friend and hero, from this earth. Years have passed. I have asked many questions: Why George, why at that age, why that year. "Why" is a very human word, one that sometimes impedes our search for perfection. George's earthly departure has given me moments of great memories, of a good example to follow, of tears, of unanswered questions. And just when I thought I had to keep on demanding an answer to my human emotions, September 11, 2001, happened. That Tuesday, as all of us on earth watched those heroes ascend to their eternal dwelling, I received my answer. It was simple and grandiose, so far removed from my personal reasoning, so very real. God had decided that my friend George should be one of those persons to welcome all the heroes of September 11. That is why he was taken from us. Until that day I had wanted George to be alive so that he could accomplish more human deeds. How limited my expectations were. They were very much terrestrial. The Divine plan for George was glorious, eternal, and in accordance to his character and soul. All those who left spouses, children, parents and friends, found eternal peace upon being greeted by George's open arms and smile. Today, Thanksgiving 2001, I am grateful to God for selecting my hero for this mission. I will stop questioning God's design. George's quest in life was to help others. His dreams went beyond the limits of his terrestrial journey. They were fulfilled when he opened the doors of eternity to the thousands of souls of The World Trade Center. HAPPY THANKSGIVING. 12/28: Ground Zero Today my wife and I made a pilgrimage to the place where the World Trade Center once existed, and where thousands of people used to spend part of their daily lives. Many of them are no longer with us. I prayed, I cried. We went inside St. Peter's Church. I imagined the moment when that great Franciscan priest was brought to the altar, his body already dead. I stared at a firefighter who, taking a break from his mission, was seating on the steps of St. Paul's Chapel. There I wrote a note of love and hope for all humanity, and signed it Rosa and Alberto. I took many pictures, many of an empty space in the sky. What did I want to accomplish by taking photographs of a very cold winter afternoon, of space and some clouds? God knows. Last summer I spent a whole afternoon showing some relatives the beauty of that place, the productive lives of those who were there, the nearby buildings, the palm trees in the Winter Garden, the marina, the esplanade... How proud I was to show the magnificence of that area to my relatives. Today I went to the marina, empty and cold. I walked along the esplanade, silent and deserted. How strange that, for the first time, and without the World Trace Center as my point of reference, I didn't get lost around that area of New York. This time I was more proud than ever to be there: Proud to be a New Yorker, proud to be American, proud to share the pain of thousands more, proud to have visited a shrine to the martyrs of 9/11. There was a moment when, upon seeing several teenagers weep, I wanted to say a special prayer for those who were my students, for the one who died and for the one who is alive. But their individual names took a while to come to mind. I could see their faces, Sylvia's and John's, but their names were the names of all the students, all the colleagues, all the teachers, all the parents and children who had witnessed first hand the sufferings of that day. Why did I want to visit Ground Zero before the first snowfall? Perhaps because I didn't want to miss the scent of the area, which somehow might be different after a blanket of snow? I'm glad I went with my wife. She showed more strength than I could have ever had. I acted like a child trying to find the exact location of one building and of another. They weren't there. The memorials are forever present, New Yorkers will always be there, others will always visit, the place has been consecrated by the lives of those who perished, and my friends and my towers will always be there and forever more in my heart. Alberto Cabra Jericho High School 99 Cedar Swamp Road Jericho, New York 11753 Phone: (516) 681-4100 Home: 75-34 Bell Blvd. Apt. 6E Bayside, New York 11364 Phone: (718) 740-0082 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 story909.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. 2002-07-18 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 64.12.96.135 Annotation Annotations to this item. Students/Teachers WTC, attack Personal connection to someone at site Religion Victims Memorials/Vigils (location or person) Premonitions/Coincidence/Fate NY:3 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: On 9/11 I had just gotten off of the midnight shift as a nurse in an extended care facility and was eagerly awaiting the appointment that morning that would allow me to see if my first grandchild was going to be a boy or a girl. As I waited for the time to pass prior to the appointment, I was watching the CBS Morning Show and the news came over the airwaves. I was glued to the set during the entire ordeal. Those at the OB/GYN office had not heard anything and I began speaking of it and then it seemed to come over the radio there. I will always remember this day...a nightmare and a dream. 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 story5996.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. 24.210.204.146 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 am compelled to tell this story. This cannot be forgotten. Every day, I took the PATH train to the base of the World Trade Center, under the towers, though 5 WTC and then past 7WTC. This morning, I got an early start. As I passed by the base entrance of 7WTC, which is a barricaded truck entrance, I noticed the dozen policemen that had recently started to guard this entrance. In the last two weeks, the guard entrance grew from three men to 12-15 armed men. Serious looking men. The following Thursday, for the first time, I saw a K-9 unit with a German Shepherd walking through the inside of a moving truck. Over the last three years, I have walked past this spot over 1200 times and I have never seen this. I passed by the shoeshine place, and decided that I did not need a 10-minute shoeshine. I wanted to get in for the afternoon budget meeting. Walking to work, I heard a plane go right overhead and a loud crash. I kept walking. Once inside my *safe* office, there was much discussion about the view. Out the window, from a very close distance, you could clearly see a smoldering fire at the WTC and an airplane sticking out of it, somewhere near the upper middle. Someone thought it was a 737. We knew this was restricted airspace and assumed it was some kind of major pilot error. We could not see the South tower from our vantagepoint. I called my boss's boss, and asked him if we should implement disaster recovery procedures. He said he knew about the situation and to keep everyone calm. I called Donna, my wife. She put me on speakerphone. "It looks like a plane hit the WTC. We are leaving soon." "Get out of there!", she said. "Do you know what is happening?", I asked. "No." "I am in a safe spot and we are just leaving". I hung up. My Dad called. "Dad, what is happening?!" "Mike, I don't know from here, I don't have a TV." "I am conferencing in Kathy." I conferenced her in. "Kathy, this is Mike and Dad, what do you see on TV?" "Looks like a plane hit the WTC." "I can see that from here, do you see anything else?" "This is it for now." "I have to get out of here. Love you guys. Bye." My mother called. I quickly told her I was leaving. I decided to let everyone go home. I said to my team, "Look, the whole city is going to wake up and evacuate. Beat the rush and get home. Try to log in from home. Stay away from the WTC. Go North. Work from home, if you can." At this point, someone yelled out, "Oh my God! A second plane hit." I could not verify this from our vantagepoint. Everyone ran to the window. All hell broke loose. A friend was visibly upset. He had just arrived. We called a group meeting. My friend said, "I saw debris coming down from the building. I realized that there were bodies falling from the building. I can't believe it, but people are jumping out of the building. They hit like water balloons." Everyone ran out the building. The 3 of us went to my office for a moment and talked to our boss. I quickly dialed him. "Where are you? Go home." Our boss, tersely replied, "What? Why should I do that?" "There are planes sticking out of the WTC. I think we are under terrorist attack. I talked to your boss, and I think we should all leave. Where are you?" He replied, "I am walking from West 4th. Meet you in front of the umbrella." Apparently he was on the Subway when this happened and he got off at West 4th street. He had no idea what was happening. If he stayed on, his next stop was Chambers Street/WTC. I think this stop was destroyed. The time was about 9:20ish. Well, I never saw him there. I waited out front and walked over to the West Side highway to see what was happening. A procession of Special Operations Trucks passed us at 80+ MPH, speeding to the scene. Many ambulances and police cars passed. Later I would learn that most of these heroes would die. A lone motorcycle rider with a Hells Angels Jacket ripped down the highway toward the building. No doubt that he would try to make a difference. I could just imagine him running up the stairs, pulling out the helpless. We were standing less than a mile from the base of the twin towers. We all thought it was over, that the people there would be evacuated. Maybe the roof was a safe spot. Why can't helicopters land there to pick up people we all wondered. We were grouped together, looking at the flames, when the building erupted, spewing smoke and concrete and steel. Smoke spewed forth, like from the gates of Hell itself. Glass shards flew everywhere from behind the tower. A big plume of smoke and debris expanded. In slow motion, I saw this big wave of doom fall toward the people below. All I could think was that I was standing there witnessing the mass murder of everyone under this heavy wall of death. It was the most hopeless feeling I have ever felt. Men and women were wailing and screaming. A young child started to throw up. A woman in front of me lost her bladder. An old man fell down, sobbing. A big wave, seemingly taller than the tallest building, grew and started to expand toward us. At this point, everyone started to run. Nobody was really sure what was happening. The smoke and dust hid the missing tower from us. I said to my comrades, "There was no reason for me to be here. Good-bye".... Walking past Chelsea Piers, someone handed me a glass of water. I thought that I should stay here and help these people give out water. But I looked and saw that they were well staffed. Only later I would learn that this would become the triage center, where the majority of the victims would be housed. My only regret is that I did not stay to help for this triage, somehow. But, in retrospect, who would know this? The phone service was not available until after many attempts. I finally got through to my wife, Donna. "Where are you, Mike?" "I am far away and heading out. I have to go. Please tell everyone that I am OK, in a safe place." I did not stop until I had gone many city blocks. Being on the West Side highway, I still had a clear view of the one building left. Wait a minute. At this moment, I realized that there was only one building left. How could anyone do this? I stood there with my mouth open, unbelievably looking at the spectacle. Someone handed me a cigarette. I started to turn and someone let out a big, "Oh no!!!!". Turning back, I saw a huge fireball, expanding from the remaining building. Focusing on this 5 story long girder (60 feet long/10 feet wide), I saw it slowly swing out, like in slow motion. I saw the antennae coming down and I knew that the whole building was collapsing. I sobbed with the group. I could hear people screaming, crying, yelling in anger. You could not take your eyes from the falling debris and the growing realization that many more were going to die. Right in front of your eyes. And there was nothing, nothing in this world that could prevent it from happening. All of the people who rushed in to help, the Special Operations, the cops, ambulances, the motorcyclist, the people leaving the building. All below would all be crushed. In disbelief, I turned and left the city. There was nothing we could do. 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 story1124.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. story Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2002-08-19 IP Address The IP address of the device used to submit the item. 199.67.138.20 Annotation Annotations to this item. Military Rescue/clean-up workers/volunteers Telephones and Cell Phones WTC, attack NY:1 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 11 Digital Archive Stories Description An account of the resource This collection is the bulk of the archive, representing the reactions and experiences of thousands of individuals beginning in 2002. 911DA Story 911DA Story: Story Tell us about what you did, saw, or heard on September 11th. Feel free to write as much or as little as you like. Tell us your story: I driving to work and admiring the lovely clear day. After a song played on the radio the announcer said " A small plane hit the world trade and paper can be seen flying all the way to the Brooklyn Bridge". Thye announcer was not overly concerned and there did not appear to be horrible. I astop the car and went into the coffee shop for my usual cup of coffee. When I left the coffe shop a man in the parking lot said "look the world trade center is on fire". I walked over and seen the black smoke coming from the tower. I then realized that this was horrible and people lives were threatned. I got into my car and continued the drive to work and withing seconds a song finished playing on the radio and the announcers were again talking about the fire when suddenly they spoke of a plane coming and sure enough hitting into the second tower. They stated this is no accident this is terrorist. I immediately froze and felt sickened and scared. I called my mother who caring for my two children 2 and 5 and asked her to stay home in the basement to stay safe. I then realized that my husband worked on three blocked from the trade center and became in an absoulote panic. I remained driving to work and went I looked across I seen the two towers on fire. I kept trying to call my husband but could not get through. He called me within minutes and said "I'm okay but you need to stay safe" he said "I need to go to help and I told him to very careful". When I went to work everybody was anxious and scared. I was working as a nurse in the research department and went to the ETD to prepared for caring of the injured patients. I watched on the TV as both towers came down and would look at the skyline in disbelief. I stayed at the ETD until 10pm when we were told that there would not be many injures as most had died. My husband helped at ground zero for 2 days and called me frequently from his friends cell phone to tell me he was okay. Our lives have been touched forever. I will always live in fear of another attack. I find it comforting to so many people falling inn love with the USA all over again. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource story2618.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. 206.20.16.247