09/11/2026
Twenty-five years ago this morning, I was stationed in Kodiak, Alaska, when my father-in-law called a little after 5 a.m. He was stuck in Anchorage because all flights had been grounded and told us that a plane had hit the World Trade Center. He was on his way to visit us from Florida. Half asleep and not yet understanding what was happening, I remember thinking it was probably a small plane that had accidentally flown into one of the towers. We told him, โGive it an hour. Iโm sure everything will be back to normal.โ Geez, was I wrong. About 20 minutes later, he called again, and this time we could hear the seriousness in his voice. We got up, turned on the television, and, like millions of people around the world, watched in disbelief as that agonizing chain of events unfolded before us.
Today, on the 25th anniversary of September 11, we remember the nearly 3,000 innocent lives taken that day and the families whose lives were forever changed. We also remember the firefighters, police officers, paramedics, military personnel, first responders, and ordinary citizens who ran toward danger when every instinct must have told them to run awayโsome making the ultimate sacrifice while trying to save people they had never met.
Twenty-five years have passed, but the images, the heartbreak, the courage, and the way our country came together afterward remain with us. May we continue to honor those we lost, remember those who answered the call, and never forget September 11, 2001.
