WORLD TRADE CENTER - WE MUST NEVER FORGET

WORLD TRADE CENTER

NEW YORK, NY

Two of New York's most prominent buildings and 3,000 people gone in a day.  We must never forget 9-11 and what it means to our country.  The thousands of families that were destroyed by terrorist that our own President will not acknowledge.  I say come here and see the photographs of the fallen heros and absorb the magnitude of this disaster.  This is sacred ground to me.  I tear up every single time I visit here.   This is a living memorial to the people who went to work, vacationed and enjoyed New York on the fateful day in September.  Every school child in America and the World for that matter should come to Ground Zero and be educated on what Islamic Terrorist are capable of doing to innocent people.  Everyone should come here to give their thanks to the men, woman and children who lost their lives for doing nothing wrong.  And in most cases, in especially in the case of firefighters, police, EMS and Port Authority workers who did something right by running into the burning buildings rather than running out.  All of these men and woman should be thanked and praised.  I don't take this lightly.  9-11 was a turning point for America and our future.  We must never forget the fallen heros.  NEVER EVER!

As a small token of our appreciation we delivered boxes of Chocolate Covered Macadamia Nuts and lots of Lion's Hawaii Coffee to the fire station near our hotel on 51st and Lexington.  Keli knocked on the door and handed the firefighters a large bag filled with the Hawaii treats.  We told them that we were from Hawaii and this is a small gift for our appreciation of their service.  It is nice to know that maybe this morning the firefighters will be waking up the great smell of Lions Coffee from Hawaii.

9-11 WE MUST NEVER FORGET

WORLD TRADE CENTER UNDER CONSTRUCTION

VISITING HERE IS IMPORTANT FOR ALL AMERICANS

REMEMBERING AND PRAYING FOR ALL OF THE VICTIMS

BRASS ARTWORK LINES WALL NEAR 911 MEMORIAL

MAY WE NEVER FORGET

SEPTEMBER 11TH - GROUND ZERO VISITED

GROUND ZERO SEPTEMBER 11TH

NEW YORK, NY

As we walked from Wall Street one day we were headed for the site of Ground Zero. It was not hard to find because there is a huge empty space in the middle of hundreds of towering buildings. The huge space looks totally out of place in Manhattan. We took a turn and ended up walking by a small window that advertised a September 11 Museum. We entered the door and were taken back to that terrible day that no one should ever forget. The Sept 11th Museum will bring tears to your eyes. It is a living tribute to those who battled and died during those early morning hours on September 11th. There are movies, photographs and actual debris from the site. Small things like a Dad's house keys and parking ticket for the day are all that are left.  As you walk from room to room your heart fills with anger, sadness and pain. It is tough.

There is a wall with photographs of the thousands of people that were loss. Moms, dads, brothers, sisters, daughters, sons, grandparents, friends and family. Most so very young and in the prime of their lives. Taken from all of us for no reason. There are stories and audio tapes of the brave firemen who ran into the building while others were running out. Over 300 died that day trying to save strangers. They are the bravest people on earth and true HEROS.

We decided to take a walking tour of Ground Zero with two survivors. One was a fireman who was in the building right before it collapsed. The other tour guide was the husband of a woman who was on the 94th floor. She was killed immediately when the first plane hit. His story of that day was very sad. His wife did not work in the building, but her company had a meeting there on Sept 11th. The meeting was set to begin at 9:00 a.m. The plane hit around 9:15 am.

The fireman tour guide had a Captain take his shift on Sept 11th. Even though he was off duty, he went into action after the first plane hit. He took four other off duty men from his department and they rushed to the Twin Towers. After entering and climbing up 20 stories, he and the other firemen decided that it was not a fire mission anymore, rather a mission to get people out of the building. They helped people down the stairs and then began to clear the area around the entrance to the towers. As one of the buildings started to collapse, they all ran for their lives. The fireman fell down across the street. His leg broken and twisted beneath his body. He asked God if he would die here on the streets of New York. 2o years of service and he did not want to go without a fight. He remembered bringing himself up as debris kept falling on his head and body. He thought that a large piece of the building would kill him. He could not see or feel anything and then darkness. The next thing he remembers is being awaken at his firehouse. Several policeman had carried him to safety and returned him to his station. After attending 75 funerals in the months that followed, the fireman got up one day to go to funeral number 76. He put on his dress uniform, looked in the mirror and said "that is it, no more". He retired that week. The Captain that took his shift on September 11th was never found.