story3298.xml

story3298.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-11

I was home from work because my 23 yr. old daughter was scheduled to have her tonsils out that day. I was watching "Good Morning America" when they interrupted with the news that a plane had crashed into the WTC. My first thought was "My God, what a horrible accident." Then the second plan crashed into the other tower. I knew it was no accident. Soon my daughter's surgery was canceled. I work for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in Philadelphia, PA and when the Pentagon was hit, I knew I would somehow be involved in the response/recovery. I left my house at 3:00 a.m. on 9/12/02 driving to be in Arlington, VA by 7:00 a.m. to start working with other federal agencies, the state and local authorities to provide whatever assistance my agency could provide. I was concerned for my family since I did not know what else might happen and I knew they would be worried about me too. There were so many agencies working together to help the vicitms and their families it was amazing. The Department of Defense immediately opened a Family Assistance Center where the victims and families could come and be assisted. I have worked many natural disasters in my career in FEMA but this was so different. The thought of all this destruction being caused by humans and not nature was and has been extremely unsettleing to me. It still is. Today, we had a counselor from our Employee Assistance Program in to give a talk about how we may be feeling. It was good to know that others are still feeling the uncertainty and anger and grief that has been bothering me over this past year. I am able to enjoy and take comfort in my family but the workplace is still a place of anxiety for me. The uncertainty of what may happen and when, bothers me very much. I have always taken pride in my job and knowing that I could provide assistance to the people in Virginia after this horrible incident is a good feeling. I pray daily for those who perished and those left behind. I ask God to bless this wonderful country we live in and to protect those who protect us everyday here in America and overseas.