September 11 – Voices of Trinity Echo Across 25 Years
(Collage of some of the Trinity messages and memories from September 2001)
I have written extensively about the events, meaning and impact of that terrible day — September 11, 2001. Just last week, I happened to come across my files from that time, and rather than opining once more on the memories and meaning of that tragedy, on this 25th Anniversary I want to share some of the messages I received at that time from alumnae and colleagues across the nation and around the world. The tapestry of these messages speaks to the hope and resilience of our great Trinity community, and some of the messages seem quite prescient in their comments on the evils spawned by that act of terrorism.
Before sharing some of those comments, I also want to lift up in memory and prayer those members of our large Trinity family who perished that day, including:
Ted Brennan, son of Gail Gallagher Brennan ’58
Sarah Clark, teacher at Backus Middle School and member of Trinity’s ETLI program
Jeffrey LeVeen, husband of Christine Friedmann LeVeen ’69
Laura Longing, niece of Nancy Phelan Wallace ’60
John Thomas McErlean, son of Agnes Inglesby McErlean ’56
Theresa Caggiano Nelson, niece of Joan Formato Ferrante ’63
Frank Skidmore, cousin of Sr. Mary Hayes, SND, ’57
Gregory James Trost, son of Marie Tinsley Trost ’61
May the blessings of the Trinity continue to give strength, hope and support to their families.
On September 11, 2001, the Trinity community rallied to support each other and those who suffered so much loss in this tragedy. I wrote to our alumnae and friends, and in response, I received dozens of messages of pain, heroism, affirmation and firm resolve to find solutions to the causes of this great tragedy.
Below are excerpts from some of the messages, keeping the authors anonymous save for their class years:
A member of the Class of 1975 wrote:
“I was in Crystal City watching the World Trade Center on television — literally not believing my eyes — when I felt a thump, like a heavy door slamming. It was the Pentagon… Since that terrible day, I have struggled to catch a glimmer of what this will mean to us… I have a horrible feeling that we are embarking on what future generations will study as a 100 Years War… West against East, the Enlightenment against the Dark Ages. No doubt conventional military responses — ground troops and bombings — will wax and wane, but will we have to somehow assimilate to constant danger?…Will we move from inconveniences like getting to the airport three hours early to diminution of our liberties in fundamental ways? We must guard against that at all cost, and as the nation’s attention turns, as it will, to other matters, we must be careful not to confuse dissent with sedition, or to allow unscrupulous partisans to take advantage of the situation to push through a particular agenda.”
A member of the Class of 1983 wrote from the Netherlands:
“As I sit here in the Netherlands on a gloomy day, I can look out my window and see many, many Dutch flags at half mast, put there by our neighbors in solidarity with us Americans and the rest of humankind. … Every time I walk on the school playground, friends and even slight acquaintances from many different parts of the world offer me their deepest sympathy. At first I feel like a fraud, for I haven’t suffered a personal loss, but then, it does feel like a personal loss. I try not to fall apart in the face of their sincerity…. My children’s classmates are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and atheist. They come from every part of the world. My children are lucky to be in this environment, that they can see each classmate for the individual he or she is, not the religion or nationality. I pray that somehow our youngest generations and those to come can learn to see each of God’s children as individuals deserving of our respect, and that they learn tolerance of our differences. The task is the responsibility of each and every one of us. It will not happen if we remain passive, it requires our strongest efforts. It is worthy of our strongest efforts.”
Older alumnae saw parallels with other national tragedies they experienced as Trinity students:
From the Class of 1945:
“My class of ’45 was in DC on December 7, 1941… We went to the Capitol the next day. In 1945 the lights went out throughout the city on the day we took our comprehensive exams… It was, like now, a very trying time for the nation. I am sure we will gain unity and strength from this horrendous act and will, in time, defeat the enemy.”
From the Class of 1948:
“Having been a Trinity student during WWII, I can truly appreciate the students’ efforts and concern for the people of our country.”
From the Class of 1963:
“So many of my thoughts as a resident of New York this past week were of Trinity and being in Social Hall, watching the black and white TV as we watched the Cuban Missile Crisis unfold, seeing the anxiety of some of the students who wept for their Cuban homeland or feared they wouldn’t live beyond the next few days or weeks. I was still in Washington a few years later when President Kennedy was assassinated and saw how grief can seize a community, and yet how that community can come together, dignified by that grief… All of these events changed our lives and the life of our nation, but our spirit carries us on, and living that spirit is the best rebuke to our enemies.”
From the Class of 1966:
“One of the first things I thought of when the news started to come through was how the Class of ’66 was barely into its freshman year when the Cuban missile crisis erupted — and we all wondered whether DC would get attacked. People were calm and reassuring then, and eventually all was well. Let us hope for the same again!”
From the Class of 2002:
“It seems that the entire world is feeling incredibly frightened and vulnerable…Most of my generation never thought anything as horrific as this could happen in our time. We thought it was what our parents and grandparents had to survive, not us…”
Some alumnae and family members witnessed the horror first-hand.
A member of the Class of 1996 wrote:
“The view from my office was a source of great distress yesterday. I am right across he water as many of you know. The towers appear less than one mile away. Seeing the towers on fire, seeing the plane dive itself into the tower and then hearing, feeling, and seeing the first tower fall was so shocking. People were screaming. The first plane crash was easily dismissed and after gawking at the burning we all went back to work until a co-worker started screaming, “there’s another one! There’s another one!” and BOOM! Seeing it out the window was so surreal.”
From the Class of 1991:
“I was in traffic on 395 Tuesday morning when I saw the plane headed for the Pentagon. So many lives lost in Tuesday’s chaos. So many lives yet to be lost. My heart weeps for all of us.”
From the Class of 1960:
“[My classmate] survived the tragedy. She walked out of an adjacent building to a friend’s apartment … her niece was on the 105th floor of one WTC that was hit. Her husband has been looking for her ever since. The family were about to baptize their infant son. Husband cannot speak of his wife in the past tense…”
From the Class of 1955:
“Our son was 70 feet from ground zero… across the side street from the towers…He heard a crash, looked out his open office door and saw two offices down the window smashed and desks, computers, etc. being sucked out the window… something crashed into his window and he dropped the phone, grabbed his briefcase and ran for his life…down 29 flights of stairs… when he got out of the building, debris was flying everywhere, he just kept praying and running for his life…”
From the Class of 1971, whose office was 2 blocks from the World Trade Center:
“It is hard to put into words what we experienced. My husband felt the heat from the second plane hitting the second tower on his face as he looked to see what had happend. When each building collapsed, it let loose a rumbling tidal wave of ash that took the daylight to midnight in moments. The darkness lasted for more than half an hour and was so dense you could not see across the street…. I woke up Wednesday and Thursday with fear in my mouth and wrestled it down each time. I went out with a purpose on Wednesday and that was to go to Mass which helped.”
From the Class of 1967:
“A classmate wrote that even if we were not directly touched, we could not escape what has happened. Sooner or later, it will reach out and latch onto all of us… I am about to become a grandmother again… I listened for a long time last week to the beautiful young woman who is still my baby girls speak of her fears for her soon-to-be-born child. Her sense of safety and security is deeply shaken for herself and her baby.”
At that time Trinity had a partnership with Elderhostel (now called Road Scholar), an organization dedicated to lifelong learning for older adults.
An Elderhostel staff member in New York wrote to me:
“As I write to you, the fires are burning in the Marriott Wall Street hotel… the prime residential location for the South Street Seaport Elderhostel program. I was on the runway at LaGuardia when the Trade Center disaster unfolded and then they evacuated the airport. Coming out of the building I looked up and saw the smoke covering the Manhattan skyline. It is not a sight I will ever forget.”
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Not forgetting is essential even 25 years later. The hatred, murderous forces that spawned September 11 are still prevalent around the world, and, sadly, the spirit of vengeance in our nation has served to stoke those fires and inflame those who would do it all again if given the chance. The last 25 years have been a time of pain, anger and backsliding into authoritarianism in the misguided belief that more power in the executive branch can protect us, all evidence to the contrary. If there is to be any relief from the fears that still haunt us, we must demand more rational thinking and behavior from our leaders. More on that in the days ahead.
Some of my blogs about September 11:
