I remember it like it was yesterday, driving to Madison, New Jersey early in the AM to meet with my colleagues at Wyeth headquarters as we had just went live on SAP for our corporate companies. Not long after I arrived one of the colleagues came to my office and said that a plane had crashed into one of the towers in New York, panic and despair ensued as many in the building had family and friends who worked in that area.
The company TV's were gathered about in the cafeteria as the horrible story unfolded before us, an announcement was made that any employee who wanted to leave could do so. We watched in horror as folks leaped from the building tops choosing to perish in that manner rather than burn to death within the building.
Shortly thereafter the second crash occurred, people were frantic in our building as they tried desperately to get ahold of friends and relatives who were scheduled to be in the New York area being attacked. My colleague David and I decided to drive back to PA as the office was completely emptying by now and the task of closing the financial monthly records was the least of anyone's concern.
I remember driving home on what was a normally jam packed highway and feeling as if I was the only car on the road, it was an eerie and uneasy feeling. I arrived back at the office in Radnor, PA and the scene was similar as employees had been dismissed for the day and folks where in a state of shock as to what had just happened.
I drove home like everyone else to find that schools had dismissed and my kids were home with their mom, we watched in dismay and wept as we saw the four attack crashes of the day on TV unfold before us, I remember staying up late into the night watching the rescue attempts and also reaching out to my son who was a Marine at the time stationed at Quantico, he had been assigned guard duty in Washington on high alert, I don't pray much but I did that day primarily for his safety but also for our country and our people.
I remember that baseball cancelled their schedule and that the country was basically on lockdown, we watched President Bush address the nation on TV as we desperately needed our leader to calm our nation and vow to our enemy that they would pay for this tragedy they bestowed upon us.
I remember our recovery and mourning thereafter, watching Larry Bowa, the manager of the Phillies actually cry when God Bless America was sang at the first game played after the tragedy, I remember being so proud to be American because our nation bonded together in that time of crisis.
We as Americans will never forget this horrible day and we should remember how we bonded together to recover, we should embrace that feeling. That to me is the true American pride and value, may those that perished that horrible day in 2001 forever Rest In Peace.
