What’s your 9/11 Story? This Is Mine.

Ken and his wife, Kathy, moved into our neighborhood last year. Ken is a retired New York City firefighter. We met at our community pool. As we were all getting to know Ken and Kathy, it didn’t take long for someone to ask the obvious question. 

Were you there on 9/11? 

He was. Ken was stationed at a fire station in the Bronx and was on the truck heading towards the scene when the second tower collapsed. He told us his wife wasn’t even sure he was alive until early that evening because cell service was spotty at best, and she wasn’t able to reach him. Ken told us he eventually got ahold of his father who relayed the news to Kathy. 

Ken spent the next three days at Ground Zero doing search and rescue. He told us what that was like and provided some details. As Ken was sharing his story I was thinking about my own memories of that terrible day. I suspect everyone else around the pool was, too. 

If you were old enough, you have a story of September 11th. Most of us weren’t on the scene like Ken, but those memories remain as does the impact of that day. This year, why not take the opportunity to ask the people you love about their memories. How did they feel? What did they do? How does it still impact them today? 

In this special episode of Long Story Short, I shared my story…the memories I have of that day. And, I talk with two important people in my world about their memories, especially some key interactions we had that day. It was interesting hearing their perspective…what they remember…and what they don’t.  

In this special episode, titled simply, 9/11/2001, you’ll hear the events of that morning as they unfolded. How do you remember events of that day? I also talk about the aspect of 9/11 that impacted me most deeply…and how something in our backyard was a daily reminder for many years. 

This article & episode were originally published 9/11/2021