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Firefighters honor legacy of their FDNY parents killed on 9/11
Sixty-five on-duty members of the FDNY lost their first-responder fathers in the Sept. 11 terror attacks, or watched them die of diseases caused by toxic smoke and debris at Ground Zero.
These young Bravest — including three women — decided to honor their fathers’ courage and sacrifice by following in their paths.
“Knowing what happened that day, it just shows their bravery and willingness to face those challenges,” FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro said of these legacies — the sons and daughters of firefighters and officers killed in the line of duty. Some were as young as 5 or 6 years old on 9/11.
Twenty years after the horror of that day, many of them posed for a portrait and shared favorite memories of their dads as they explained why they could not resist the FDNY’s siren call.
Many say working in the same job — sometimes in the same firehouse and wearing the same badge number as their dads — feels like having a guardian angel watch over them.
FDNY legacy: Anthony RagagliaHero father: Leonard Ragaglia Sr.
Anthony Ragaglia wears a tattoo on his left arm that shows what he shared with his father, Leonard Ragaglia, and what he lost on 9/11 at age 7.
Puzzle pieces that fit his dad’s portrait depict baseball and hockey, the teams his dad coached, the video games they played together, and “the toy car he pushed me around in.” Broken pieces show Anthony’s 8th birthday, basketball, weight lifting, high school and college graduation.
“He was a very loving family man,” the 27-year-old recalls. “The thing I remember the most is waiting for him to come home from work and jumping on him when he came in.”
Once pondering a career in the sports world, Anthony graduated from Mount Saint Mary College determined to become a firefighter to honor his dad and “make him happy.”
Facing the prospect of another life-threatening crisis like 9/11 caused no hesitation, he said. “I kind of put it aside. It’s the dangers that come with the job.”
Now assigned to Engine 217 in Brooklyn, he has no regrets. “I love how everyone’s part of a family, and everything you do together you do as a team.”
Anthony’s brother, Leonard Ragaglia, Jr., 30, started his career as an NYPD officer, but graduated from the Fire Academy at the same time, in September 2019. Leonard is assigned to his father’s Engine 54 in Midtown, which lost 15 members on 9/11 — more than any other firehouse in the city.
FDNY legacy: John Bergin Hero father: John P. Bergin
It could be any child’s dream to spend the day in a firehouse, ride an engine with lights and sirens and eat supper with the firefighters in their raucous kitchen. That’s what John Bergin did as a boy.
“My coolest memories are going to work with him,” John said of his father, John P. Bergin, of Rescue 5 in Staten Island.
“Every once in a while, in the summer, on weekends or a holiday, I got randomly woken in the morning and went to work with him for the day. I went on the runs, but had to stay on the rig. I’ve seen him dive in the water. I’ve seen him go to fires.” He helped with chores. “We’d go out and shop for the meal, and everyone cooked together. Like a big family.”
John was 9 years old on 9/11 when his father, 39, and 10 fellow Rescue 5 firefighters responded to the World Trade Center call and never came home.
The late father of three loved the job and the family life it let him enjoy. “He just seemed happy, like there was nothing better in the world,” John said. “That pretty much locked it in for me, what I wanted to do.”
At 29, John wears his father’s badge, No. 6359, at Ladder 157 in Flatbush.
FDNY legacy: Chris HowardHero father: George Howard
The Port Authority Police badge, No. 1012, that Chris Howard treasures is a duplicate.
That’s because the original one belonging to his dad, emergency services specialist George Howard, spent eight years in a US president’s pocket.
“When President Bush came into town, on Sept. 14, he wanted to meet with everybody who had [family members] confirmed missing or killed in action,” Chris Howard said.
His father, a 16-year Port Authority veteran and a volunteer fire captain in their hometown of Hicksville, LI, had the day off on Sept. 11, but he rushed to the World Trade Center to assist. He was killed when the North Tower fell. Chris was 18.
“We brought the badge down and my grandmother … pressed it into George’s, President Bush’s, hand,” Howard, now 38, said. “And then for the rest of his presidency he always had the badge on him.”
Then-Rep. Peter King (R-NY) “would call him out, say ‘Where’s the badge?’” Howard said. “And he always had it in his pocket.”
Today, George Howard’s badge is on display at the Bush Presidential Library in Dallas, Texas — and George Howard’s son is a firefighter with Ladder 157 in Flatbush, Brooklyn.
“I think he always wanted to be a fireman, that’s why he became an ESU cop,” Chris mused. “So I hope he’s looking down and laughing.”
FDNY legacy: Emmet MeehanHero father: Edward Meehan
“I was in a weird state of mind after he died, a little bit of depression, I guess,” said Emmet Meehan, 30. “I had no direction, no purpose. The Fire Department was the structure I needed.”
Meehan took the Fire Department test “for the hell of it” in 2017 after abandoning his life in California to be with his dad, Lt. Edward Meehan, who had been diagnosed with cancer as a result of his rescue efforts on 9/11.
“I was with him those last two or three months every day,” Meehan said. “We always were close, but when you’re facing death it’s like anything you were holding back is going out the window. That’s a time I cherish a lot.”
Edward Meehan died in February 2018, just six months after his diagnosis, as his son’s test was being graded. “He had no idea I would join the department. It wasn’t a thought at all,” Meehan said.
A prayer card from his dad’s funeral — bearing a photo of Ed from his days as a probie and another with his beloved Engine 45 truck — is tucked into Meehan’s helmet as he works at Ladder 34 in Washington Heights.
“I’m just keeping him with me,” he said.
FDNY legacies: Erik Wieber and Chris Wieber
Hero father: Robert J. Wieber
“I think he’s proud of us, you know?” Chris Wieber said. “He would have been proud no matter what we did.”
“But I’m sure he’s a little happier that we followed in his footsteps and chose to be firefighters, too,” said his brother Erik.
The brothers’ dad, Robert J. Wieber, a firefighter at Engine 262 in Astoria, Queens, developed a rare non-Hodgkin lymphoma brain cancer as a result of his rescue and recovery work at the World Trade Center. He was 50 when he died in 2006.
“I guess you could say we were fortunate enough to have a couple more years with him,” Chris said. “But eventually it got him.”
Chris, now 33, always planned to become a firefighter, but Erik — his elder by two years — took a more circuitous route.
“I was doing accounting and it just wasn’t working out for me,” Erik recalled. “My dad, he loved his job, so that’s what made me want to change.”
The two ended up attending the Fire Academy together, becoming firefighters side by side in 2014. Today, Erik is assigned to Ladder 113 in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, while Chris works a few miles away at Ladder 176 in Brownsville.
“We kinda have a reason now to know why he was so happy every day going to work,” Chris said.
FDNY legacies: Carl and Greg Kumpel Hero father: Kenneth Kumpel
Carl Kumpel was only 8 years old when his father Kenneth, a firefighter with Ladder 25 on the Upper West Side, died in the collapse of the South Tower — but his colleagues’ response made a lasting impression.
“I became a firefighter because there’s so much camaraderie,” he said. “Especially after 9/11, I saw how much they came together and helped our family out.”
Carl, now 28, swore in as a Fire Department probie in 2017. Two years later his older brother Greg, 30, followed suit. Today, they work in neighboring Harlem firehouses — Carl at Engine 37, Greg at Engine 80 — 14 blocks apart.
“I saw just how much fun he was having and how much he truly loved and was passionate about the job,” Greg said.
He finds the work enormously satisfying.
“You get called to something, and the adrenaline’s up,” Greg said. “But then there’s that moment when you get to reflect and realize what you did and the impact that you have on people’s lives on a daily basis.”
Their mother, Nancy Kumpel, is a bit less enthusiastic, they admit with knowing laughs.
“She’s a little nervous, but she’s very proud of both of us,” Carl said.
“Yeah, I’d say my mom is 10 percent nervous, 90 percent very happy,” his brother agreed.
FDNY legacy: James DowdellHero father: Kevin C. Dowdell
“This is the only thing we ever recovered from him down there,” said James Dowdell, hefting a heavy Halligan tool in his hands.
The initials “KD” soldered onto the head of the multipurpose pry bar makes it instantly recognizable: It belonged to Lt. Kevin C. Dowdell, James’ father, who raced to the World Trade Center with his unit, Rescue 4 from Woodside, Queens. Six members of the squad were killed.
“It got to us in early October of ‘01,” Dowdell, now 37, said. “We never found his body, but … as a family, I guess, we took it as our memento of him.”
He and his brother Patrick, 39, have cherished the tool that somehow survived the South Tower collapse — even whisking it to safety from the onslaught of Hurricane Sandy, which flooded Patrick’s home in Breezy Point, Queens.
Kevin Dowdell’s heroics with Rescue 4 included national recognition for his recovery efforts in the wake of the Oklahoma City bombing. Today, James Dowdell works at another of the city’s elite companies, Brooklyn’s Rescue 2.
“Being a firefighter does make me feel closer to my father,” he said. “It makes me proud to put on the same uniform he died for.”
FDNY legacy: Robert WallaceHero father: Robert F. Wallace
Lt. Robert F. Wallace was killed on Sept. 11 as he climbed toward the inferno on the South Tower’s 78th floor — but he’s never left his son’s side.
“Sometimes I’ve been in situations on the job when I’ve talked to him, you know, ‘point me the way, show me what to do,’” firefighter Robert Wallace said. “It’s a real confidence booster to feel like he’s with me.”
Wallace, 39, the son, grandson, and great-grandson of New York City firefighters, has spent his entire 14-year career at Engine 275 in Jamaica, Queens. The “War Wagon” responded to 715 fires in 2019, making it one of the city’s most active engine companies.
“I was very, very fortunate to land a spot here,” Wallace said. “As a fireman you want to be busy. I love it, never a dull moment.”
His dad, he said, was “a whack job” with “the biggest sense of humor” — known for his habit of gazing and pointing up at the sky until friends and random strangers craned their necks to see what he was looking at (which was never anything at all).
“After he died, guys from his firehouse down at the [World Trade Center] site would take pictures of each other, pointing up,” Wallace said. “Just to remember him.”
FDNY legacy: Terence PfeiferHero father: Raymond J. Pfeifer
Terence Pfeifer tucks two prayer cards from his father’s wake into his FDNY helmet. One shows a vigorous Ray Pfeifer at a fire. “F–k cancer,” is written over the picture.
“He would say it a lot. He would make light of it,” his son said.
On the morning of 9/11, Ray was golfing with other off-duty firefighters when the first plane crashed into the World Trade Center. They grabbed gear at their firehouse, Engine 40, Ladder 35, near Lincoln Center, and raced to Ground Zero.
Ray spent the next eight months digging through toxic rubble for victim remains. Diagnosed with advanced kidney cancer eight years later, he died in 2017 from the disease that ravaged his body.
“I’m a lucky guy,” Ray Pfeifer told The Post in 2015. “I’ve had 15 years with my kids after 9/11, and I’m still here with Stage 4 cancer.”
Terence, 29, dwells on happy times when his dad pitched for his firehouse softball team. “I just remember how fun that was. A lot of the guys would bring their kids, so we’d all hang out and play.”
Ray became an ardent advocate — a “poster boy,” as he called it — for compensation and health care for hundreds of ailing responders.
At age 59, he died three days after learning that his son was admitted to the next FDNY class, clinging to life until he got the good news. Terence is assigned to Engine 79 in the Bronx.
FDNY legacy: Chris Ganci Hero father: Peter Ganci
“He was the highest-ranking uniformed firefighter in the city,” Chris Ganci smiled. “But if you asked him what he did for a living, he’d say he was a New York City firefighter.”
Ganci’s father, Chief of Department Peter Ganci, heroically returned to the World Trade Center to direct rescue operations after the South Tower collapsed. He died when the North Tower gave way.
Chris, then 25, had a well-paid pharma job and was about to earn his MBA from New York University.
“But I wasn’t happy,” he said. “So I thought, basically, what’s the closest example? And he was always happy going to work.”
He completed his MBA program — but soon left the business world to join the FDNY.
“It’s the best decision I ever made in my entire life.”
Chris, now 45, joined the department in 2005. Today he’s a battalion chief, leading the 19th Battalion in the West Bronx. His brother Peter, 47, is a Fire Department captain.
“There’s a reason we call each other ‘brother’ on the fire ground,” he said. “It’s more than a relationship. That’s how I feel about my father every single day I walk through those doors.”
FDNY legacy: John Leahy Hero father: James Leahy
“When I was little, I would listen to it all the time,” John Leahy said of the message that his dad, NYPD officer James Leahy, left on the family answering machine on the morning of Sept. 11.
“He was super calm,” Leahy remembered. “It was just, ‘I’m here helping out and I’ll call you later.’”
Officer Leahy was on patrol in Greenwich Village, two miles away from the attack, when he witnessed the first plane’s impact. He raced to the scene to assist. John, the youngest son he called “his buddy,” was 6 years old.
“Everyone told my dad he didn’t have to be there,” John said.
“He was last seen bringing oxygen tanks up the stairs of Tower 1 for the firefighters” — without any protective equipment of his own.
“He chose to go and help the Fire Department out. So I decided that’s what I wanted to do.”
Today Leahy, 26, works at Engine 33 in the East Village, which shares turf with his father’s 6th Precinct.
“My firehouse lost 10 guys in the tower where my dad was,” he said. “I don’t know if they were together in there, but they were all in the same building.
“So it’s funny, now, that I ended up here. It’s like he’s looking out for me.”
FDNY legacy: Josephine SmithHero father: Kevin Smith
“My father would do anything and everything for anybody, whether he knew you or not,” said Josephine Smith.
“Selfless would have been the way to put it,” she added with a nostalgic smile.
Her dad, firefighter Kevin Smith, was a Marine Corps veteran and a founding member of Hazmat 1 in Maspeth, Queens, the Fire Department’s dedicated company of hazardous materials experts.
The unit was quickly deployed to the World Trade Center on Sept. 11 — and was almost entirely wiped out there. Twelve of its members, including Smith, were slain.
“I’ve always wanted to be a firefighter my whole life,” Josephine Smith, now 41, said. “Just watching my father as I grew up, saving people, protecting the city of New York and loving what it is that he did made me want to do and be everything that he was.”
Smith became the Fire Department’s first female legacy in 2014, at the age of 34. Today, she’s a firefighter at Engine 39 on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.
“We’re all a family in a different way than anybody else is,” she said of the deep bond that 9/11 legacy firefighters feel among themselves.
“It’s something that nobody else can really understand except for us.”
FDNY legacy: Kelly Fullam Hero father: Martin Fullam
“I’m the first and only girl my firehouse has ever had,” Kelly Fullam said.
“There’s a little bit of an adjustment period — you know, for them,” she added, flashing a mischievous grin. “But it’s good … I feel like I have 50 big brothers.”
Fullam was the oldest of three sisters whose dad, Lt. Martin Fullam, died in 2013 of polymyositis, a rare autoimmune disease that he and several other first responders developed as a result of their World Trade Center rescue efforts.
After his death, Kelly, 30, joined her father’s beloved Fire Department herself and is now stationed at Engine 284 in Brooklyn’s Dyker Heights neighborhood.
“I’ve always wanted to be a firefighter, just seeing how my dad … loved the job,” she said. “It was never ‘I have to go to work’ — it was always ‘I get to go to work.’”
Lt. Fullam’s 2010 testimony before the US Senate was instrumental in the passage of the Zadroga Act, the law that extended federal aid to 9/11 victims who, like Fullam, developed WTC-related illnesses years after the attacks.
“I was very lucky to have him as a dad,” she said.
FDNY legacies: Matt, Carl, Rebecca and Marc Asaro
Hero father: Carl Asaro Sr.
“I see him in all of us — especially in how witty he was,” Rebecca Asaro said of her father, Carl Asaro, who inspired four of his six children to follow him into the Fire Department.
“He always had something smart or wise to say, and I see that in my brothers,” she said.
“In the firehouse, you’ve always got to have the witty comeback, so my home throughout my childhood was basically training. I’ve been a probie for 30 years now,” she laughed.
Rebecca was 9 when her dad — along with every member of the 15-man shift at Midtown’s Engine 54/Ladder 4/Battalion 9 — was killed on 9/11. It was the heaviest loss of life suffered by any single firehouse that day.
“We never found my dad, so there was never really closure for us,” she said.
Today, all four of the firefighting Asaros serve in Manhattan: Carl, now 33, at Ladder 23; Matt, 32, at Engine 33; Marc, 27, at Engine 22; and Rebecca, 29, who was thrilled to be assigned to their father’s old outfit, Engine 54.
“I am literally following my father’s footsteps every single day,” she said.
“Some days I don’t think too much about 9/11,” she said. “But working that house, seeing the memorial there, you really can’t avoid it.”
To help preserve her father’s memory, she offers tours to visitors, showing off the bronze bas-relief panel at Eighth Avenue and 48th Street that pays tribute to him and his lost comrades.
FDNY legacy: Michael SullivanHero father: John P. Sullivan
Third-generation firefighter Michael Sullivan feels he has a lot to live up to.
“Walking through the same doors, sharing the same locker that he had … it’s pretty amazing,” said Sullivan, a firefighter at Ladder 34 in Washington Heights.
His father, John P. “Sully” Sullivan, was the house’s rock for his entire 27-year career — so much so that the city has dubbed its 161st Street block “Firefighter John P. Sullivan Way” in his honor.
“And my grandfather was also in the same firehouse, so — no pressure,” Sullivan said with a self-deprecating chuckle.
John Sullivan died in 2010, just weeks after his retirement at age 52.
“It was pancreatic cancer,” said Michael of his father’s diagnosis, related to the toxic environment at Ground Zero. “We only really had him for a month after his diagnosis.”
Colleagues remember his dad’s “very calming” presence, no matter how chaotic or dangerous the scene.
“You always felt safe with him. Whether it was on the job or off the job, you would feel a blanket of safeness,” the 27-year-old Sullivan said.
“Because you never see a firefighter run, it’s just not how you operate,” he explained. “Everything’s smooth. You’ve just got to be easy, and take it all in, because there’s a lot going on.
“That’s him, he was smooth,” he said. “And now I carry the torch.”
FDNY legacy: Manny MojicaHero father: Manuel Mojica Jr.
As a child nicknamed “Little Manny,” Manny Mojica watched his dad roar off to work on his Harley-Davidson, knowing he was doing something important.
“He was my superhero then, and still is,” he said of Manuel Mojica Jr., a firefighter at Squad 18 in Greenwich Village known for his motorcycle, tattoos and big mustache.
When “Big Manny” died in the World Trade Center rescue efforts, he was 37. Manny was 5.
Now 25, Manny pays tribute to his dad with tattoos on his muscular right arm. They depict the logo of the Grateful Dead, his dad’s favorite band; the words from a song, “Inspiration, move me brightly;” the Harley-Davidson; a kneeling fireman with two beams of light for the Twin Towers; and a Maltese Cross marked 9017, his dad’s badge number.
Manny, who joined the Bravest in 2019, wears that number at Engine 298 in Jamaica, Queens, fulfilling his lifelong dream of becoming a firefighter like his father. “That was my only plan.”
He remains close to retired members of his dad’s old firehouse.
“They were always there to help my mother, sister and me, and always made us feel welcome,” he said.
Now a mirror-image of “Big Manny,” he rides a motorcycle and likes to work on cars. He is refurbishing the old Harley, but only to ride on his dad’s birthday, Father’s Day, and 9/11 anniversaries.
FDNY legacies: Jonathan and Christopher Otten Hero father: Michael J. Otten
“I knew he was going to be there that day when I saw the fire on the news. I knew he was saving other people,” Jonathan Otten recalled of his father on 9/11, when he was 8 years old.
Michael J. Otten, 42‚ was killed with all 10 fellow Bravest from Engine 40/Ladder 35 in Midtown who raced to the blazing Twin Towers.
Before then, Jonathan knew little about the dangers of the job.
He remembers how his dad “always walked into a room with an ear-to-ear grin, and never let anything get to him.”
A “big kid,” as Marion Otten called her husband, the father of three spent hours on end playing football, soccer and baseball with the boys on their East Islip front lawn.
“He taught us right from wrong, to always be polite and respectful of other people. But he was able to have fun with us whenever he could,” said Jonathan, 28, who is due to graduate from the Fire Academy this month. He will be a fourth-generation FDNY firefighter, following his father, grandfather Richard and great-grandfather Henry into the department.
“I grew up my whole life thinking I was going to be a fireman. This was going to be my career, my passion and there was no looking away from it.”
His father’s death did not deter him. “I know he died doing what he loved. I do it for the same reason — to put your own life on the line to help other people when they need it the most.”
His brother Christopher, 31, joined the Bravest first. He serves with Ladder 35, the “Cavemen,” on the Upper West Side.
FDNY legacy: Pete J. CarrollHero father: Peter J. Carroll
Firefighters wear a hood under their helmets to prevent their head, neck and ears from burns. Pete Carroll keeps a brown hood that belonged to his dad, Peter J. Carroll, in his fireman’s coat pocket.
“I carry it with me every single day on every single run. I like to think he’s looking out for me and the guys I work with.”
Pete’s older brother Michael, who joined the FDNY three years after 9/11, carried the fire-resistant hood for 13 years. Michael, now at Rescue 5, bestowed it on Pete when he became a firefighter in 2019.
Just 8 years old on 9/11 when his father was killed, Pete has vivid memories of the time he spent with his dad, “just me and him,” in the woods and swamps near his grandparents’ home upstate.
“Me and him used to catch frogs and snakes and keep them as pets. It was the most fun in the world.”
After 9/11, the family received a letter from a woman who worked in the Twin Towers. “He pulled her out and went back in,” Pete said she wrote.
“He was one of those extremely brave people,” Pete said. “I’m blessed to live in his footsteps.”
Pete, 28, serves at Ladder 120 in Brownsville, Brooklyn, near his dad’s Squad 1. His younger brother, Christopher, 26, will soon join the FDNY as well.
FDNY legacy: Glenn Perry Hero father: Glenn C. Perry
Glenn Perry’s dad never tried to persuade his son to become a firefighter.
“He wanted me to do something else. He wasn’t pushing it,” Perry said. Lt. Glenn C. Perry had been so eager to follow the path of his own dad into the FDNY that he ran up and down the stairs at a Staten Island rail station with an oxygen canister to train for the test.
Before 9/11, the younger Perry thought about becoming a gym teacher or joining the military. That changed when he was 16. Lt. Perry, 41, died in the World Trade Center collapse.
“After that happened, it was pretty much a no-brainer. Shove it down the terrorists’ throats, and tell them ‘You didn’t win,’” the son said.
“After 9/11, he would have wanted me to join the FDNY. To become a third-generation firefighter and try to fill my dad’s shoes … is a very difficult task.”
Perry, 36, who joined the Bravest in 2006, is assigned to Ladder 34 in Washington Heights, the same firehouse where his dad last served — and where one of his dad’s fellow firefighters still works.
“I plan on doing another 15 years,” he said.
FDNY legacy: Thomas HeedlesHero father: Dennis Heedles
Not until his father’s funeral in 2015 did Thomas Heedles realize the FDNY was where he belonged.
“Even though my dad had been retired for more than 10 years by then, the department took care of everything,” Heedles said.
“That got me thinking — yes, you’re taking a risk every time you go to work,” he said. “But at my dad’s funeral, I felt, they got our back.”
Dennis Heedles, who was stationed at Ladder 76 in Tottenville, Staten Island, on Sept. 11, died 14 years later — weeks after being diagnosed with WTC-related lung cancer.
“It was sudden,” said Thomas, now 31 and a firefighter at Ladder 148 in Borough Park, Brooklyn. “We all thought he was the strongest guy in the world. By the time they caught it, it was too late.”
Heedles was one of a then-record 16 legacy probies in his October 2019 Fire Academy class.
“A legacy already has a respect for the job,” he explained. “You’re in the firehouse all the time from when you’re a little kid; it’s already part of you.
“Some guys feel like it’s just work,” Heedles said. “We come in knowing a little bit better what it’s all about.”
FDNY legacy: James TancrediHero father: Vincent Tancredi
“When I was younger, I told him he was crazy for running into burning buildings,” James Tancredi said.
It wasn’t until 2008, when his firefighter father Lt. Vincent Tancredi died at age 49 from 9/11-related brain cancer, that James changed his mind. He was 19 at the time.
“Then I realized what the job was all about,” James said. “And that it’s the only thing I want to do with my life.”
Tancredi, now 32 and a father himself — with an 18-month-old son and another baby on the way — marvels at the time and energy that his dad lavished on his boys, James and Kevin, during their childhood years.
“He came home and always gave us his full attention, no matter how tired he was,” he recalled. “And now I realize how tired he actually could be, coming home from a 24 [hour shift].”
His day-to-day work at Ladder 39 in the Wakefield neighborhood of the Bronx “definitely makes me feel I have a closer bond with my dad,” Tancredi said.
“I wish we could have conversations about things that happen on the job. But doing it makes me feel…” he paused for a moment, searching for the right word. “Whole.”
FDNY legacy: Larry SullivanHero father: Lawrence J. Sullivan
“This picture reminds me how much he loved the job, how happy he was to work in Rescue 5,” Larry Sullivan said of his father, Lawrence J. Sullivan, who died in 2012 at age 53 of a rare cancer linked to his digging at Ground Zero.
Larry was with his dad in 2011 when a Sloan Kettering doctor told him the tumor in his small intestine could not be removed.
“The first thing he said, in tears, was, ‘I’ll never be a fireman again.’”
After chemo and radiation failed, Sullivan spent his final months in bed at home, but had plenty of company with his wife Virginia, three sons and two daughters.
Larry and his dad watched Yankees games, laughed and talked about his job with the FDNY. As he was ailing, Rescue 5 comrades visited and tended to his every need.
The Staten Island veteran voiced a final hope that this death would give sons Larry and James the “legacy points” to catapult them into the Bravest.
“He wanted me and my brother to be firemen so badly. He used to always tell me, ‘It’s the best job in the world.’”
In 2014, Larry, now 39, was assigned to Ladder 148 in Borough Park. One year later, James, 30, joined Engine 310 in East Flatbush. Their brother Robert, 33, is a member of the NYPD’s Emergency Service Unit.
FDNY legacy: Thomas Van Doran Hero father: Thomas R. Van Doran
“My dad never stopped learning,” Thomas Van Doran said.
“When he turned 50, my mom bought him a saxophone,” said Van Doran, 27, a firefighter at Ladder 154 in Jackson Heights, Queens.
“He had no musical experience whatsoever, and it was pretty rough in the beginning, but he taught himself how to play. He’d even bring it to the firehouse with him.
“To this day I’ll meet guys from his firehouse who’ll say to me, ‘Just tell me you’re not playing the saxophone, please!’” Van Doran laughed.
Thomas R. Van Doran was a captain with Engine 95 in upper Manhattan on Sept. 11. “He was on restricted duty at the time,” his son said. “But he went down to the pile that day and was there for six months.”
The toxins he breathed there likely caused the esophageal cancer that killed him in 2012.
Around his neck, the younger Van Doran wears a St. Florian pendant honoring the patron saint of firefighters — another gift from his mother, Elizabeth.
“My mom met my dad when he was at Engine 23 in Manhattan,” Van Doran said. “She gave him this pendant when they started dating. He wore it to work every single day.
“It was kind of a way to stay safe, and it worked,” he said. “Maybe it’ll protect me, too.”
FDNY legacy: Peter Regan Hero father: Donald J. Regan
Peter Regan was a Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton outside San Diego when the Twin Towers collapsed, killing his father, Donald Regan, 47, of Rescue 3 in the Bronx.
The 20-year-old flew to New York and raced to Ground Zero, where he dug and dug for days in the smoking rubble “because my father was in there.” He found human remains, but his family never recovered his father’s.
After 9/11, Peter served two tours in Iraq, including Operation Enduring Freedom, before joining Ladder 174 in Brooklyn, a former firehouse of his dad’s where some members had worked with Donald.
Peter knew how his father felt about firefighting.
“My dad loved going in. He was in a much better mood when he came home knowing he did something good for someone else. He would always have the attitude, ‘I wish I could do more.’”
Now 40, Peter is married and has four children, ages 3 to 9, and appreciates his dad, who also had four kids, more than ever.
“Now I look back and I’m like, ‘How did he do this every day?’”
Donald worked a second job as an HVAC technician to support his family. With his children all playing sports at the same time, “He tried to make at least an inning of every game,” he recalled.
Peter said he aims to live up to his father’s legacy every day.
“What he modeled I’m trying to stick with,” he said. “It’s a good pressure to put on yourself. You’ve got to do well because you’re living up to expectations. I don’t want to let up.”
FDNY legacy: Aric TegtmeierHero father: Paul A. Tegtmeier
What Aric Tegtmeier remembers most about his childhood are fishing trips with his dad, Paul A. Tegtmeier: “That’s what he and I used to do.”
Tegtmeier was just 6 years old when his firefighter father was killed at the World Trade Center, yet memories of angling on family vacations in the Adirondacks, Poughkeepsie and Outer Banks, NC — or just on outings to a local pond — still come to mind.
Looking back now, the 26-year-old sees his dad as much more than a happy, gone-fishing kind of guy who doted on Aric and his two sisters. He was also a volunteer firefighter for more than 20 years in Roosevelt, NY, who kept testing for the FDNY. When he finally made it, he gave up a higher-paying career with the phone company to join the Bravest.
“It’s all he ever wanted to do.”
His father became an FDNY probie at the “pretty old” age of 40 (the limit has since dropped to 29) and died on 9/11 just 18 months later.
His dad’s accomplishments impressed his young son to follow suit. “If he could do it at 40 years old, I could do it at my age.”
Aric, who has a degree in arson investigation, is a member of Ladder 58 in the Bronx, near his father’s old firehouse, Ladder 46.
FDNY legacy: Chris MascaliHero father: Joseph A. Mascali
“It takes a special person to do this job, not to pat us all on the back,” said Chris Mascali, 38, an eight-year FDNY veteran assigned to Ladder 157 in Flatbush, Brooklyn.
“And I have a different understanding of that, now that I’m doing the same thing my father did.”
Joseph A. Mascali was one of 11 members of Staten Island’s elite Rescue 5 unit who perished at the World Trade Center on the morning of Sept. 11.
“I always felt like I might become a fireman,” Chris Mascali said. “I went to college and thought for a while that maybe I’d take a different path. But the 11th drew me back in.
“The job, it’s my connection with my dad,” he said.
His fondest memory of his father dates back to the summer of 2001, as Chris competed in a prestigious junior golf tournament in Staten Island.
“I never liked the family or anyone to watch me play,” he recalled. “But unbeknownst to me, my dad was there the whole time, watching from a distance.
“I won the tournament, and suddenly out from behind the trees he came walking down to me,” Mascali said.
“It was one of the last moments we shared — a hug on the 18th hole I’ll never forget.”
FDNY legacy: Michael O’Hanlon Jr. Hero father: Michael O’Hanlon Sr.
Michael O’Hanlon Sr. wore his fierce Irish pride on his sleeve — and on his firefighter’s helmet, with its distinctive bright green shamrock.
“He was all about his Irish heritage,” said son Michael Jr., now 32.
“I have so many pictures of myself as a kid wearing this helmet,” he said. “Putting it on again was definitely emotional.”
When O’Hanlon Sr. died in 2017 of stomach and esophageal cancer developed after spending months at Ground Zero, his son was just about to take the firefighter’s test to follow his dad’s path.
“Becoming a firefighter was one of my dreams as a kid,” O’Hanlon said. “I think God had it in his plan all along that that would be the time.”
Today O’Hanlon, who joined the department in 2019, works at Ladder 59 in the Bronx’s University Heights neighborhood — just a mile away from Engine 68 in Highbridge, his dad’s home turf for his entire 30-year career.
“I’m meeting so many people now who worked with him or knew him from the Emerald Society,” he said, of the group of firefighters with Irish heritage. “To hear them praise him, talk about his character, how he conducted himself — it makes me so proud.”
“Now that I’m experiencing it firsthand, I’m learning to appreciate the honor, the prestige, and the responsibility he felt in the way he did the job.”
FDNY legacy: Brian Phillips Hero father: Raymond R. Phillips
Raymond R. Phillips played Santa so well, his own kids couldn’t recognize him. “One of us said, ‘Santa’s got daddy’s eyes,’ and Mom was like, ‘The kids are onto us,’” his son Brian remembered.
The 6-foot-3 firefighter’s nickname was “Gonzo,” which came from Godzilla, but he brought joy for 30 years as St. Nick at a burn center and the annual FDNY Widows & Children’s holiday party.
“He was a big guy with a big personality,” said Brian, 31, now a firefighter assigned to Ladder 37 in Bedford Park, the Bronx.
On Sept. 11, Raymond was called to the Twin Towers from the Special Operations Command on Roosevelt Island. He spent weeks on the smoking pile searching for bodies. He developed asthma, which ultimately triggered a fatal heart attack in 2018.
Over the years, the FDNY fellowship made an impression on Brian. Last summer, a Bronx firefighter came up to him and said, “When my dad passed, Gonzo went above and beyond for our family.”
Added Brian: “I love the firefighting side of the job, but I fell in love with the camaraderie and brotherhood behind it.”
Raymond encouraged his kids to explore public service, but never pushed it, Brian said. His older brother, Raymond, 33, is an NYPD officer. His younger sister, Courtney, 29, is in nursing school.
Brian joined the Bravest a year after his dad died. When he inherited his father’s badge number, 5659, his mom, Maureen, bestowed upon him the gold Maltese cross, with 5659 engraved on it, that she had given her husband as a gift.
FDNY legacy: Gary Watson Hero father: Kenneth T. Watson
Gary Watson, who was 7 years old when he lost his doting father, firefighter Kenneth T. Watson, felt reluctant at first about taking the same career path.
“What I went through as a child was tough. God forbid, if something happened to me, I wouldn’t want my kids growing up without a dad.”
But his attitude has evolved over 20 years.
years.
“The older I got, I realized you can’t really think about it that way. I want to save lives. I want to help people out. You can’t think about the negative ‘what ifs,’” said Gary, 27, who is set to graduate from the Fire Academy this month.
“I think about the good stuff,” like summer camping trips to the Catskills with the families of the firefighters in his dad’s Engine 214/Ladder 111 in Bedford-Stuyvesant, dubbed “Nut House.”
Gary and his three siblings played with the other kids and everyone bonded around the campfire. “It’s something I would like to share with my family when that time comes.”
His father had been a star lacrosse player at Smithtown West High School, where he met his wife Susan, and passed his athletic ability onto his three sons and daughter. Gary’s older brother Ken and sister Angela are Nassau County cops.
On his back, Gary has tattoos of a kneeling firefighter with angel wings in front of the Twin Towers, his father’s badge number 11685 and the simple tribute: “Dad.”
“I’m positive now,” he said. “Everything I do now I’m hoping he’s proud of me.”
FDNY legacy: Thomas ‘Tommy’ Palombo Hero father: Frank Anthony Palombo
Tommy Palombo’s 2-year-old son loves bedtime.
“That’s grandpa’s truck!” little Anthony Frank said excitedly as his dad turned the pages of the picture book “Goodnight Firehouse.”
“We try to tell him about my dad in a way that works for his age level,” Palombo, 29, said of the boy named in honor of Frank Anthony Palombo, one of seven firefighters from Brooklyn’s Ladder 105 lost on 9/11.
“Last year on September 11 I took him to the fountains and to my dad’s firehouse to start the tradition with him,” Palombo said. In another year or two Anthony’s little brother Luca, 11 months, will join them.
Tommy himself was just 9 when he lost his dad in the terror attacks, and he has cherished a Mass card from his funeral ever since.
“Now I wear it behind my fronties,” he said — the leather helmet badge that identifies his unit, Engine 69 in Harlem, where he’s worked since 2015. “It helps me, just his presence.”
Two members of the 10-sibling Palombo family, Tommy and his brother John, 28, joined the department.
“Me and him were not that close growing up, but now we might be the closest,” Palombo said. “It’s that bond — it’s hard to describe but it means a lot.”
Dad photos courtesy of FDNY; Production by Sway NY.
115. Filosofia: Richard Dawkins Vs Alister McGrath
Published on Dec 21, 2012
Neste vídeo: Richard Dawkins Vs Alister McGrath
Curta nossa página no facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/multiversosp…
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At the 40 minute mark Richard Dawkins and Alister McGrath discuss Deena Burnett’s assertion that her husband Tom was an instrument carrying out God’s will in stopping the plane from hitting the White House.
United Airlines Flight 93[edit]
On September 11, 2001, while on board United Airlines Flight 93, Burnett sat next to passenger Mark Bingham. Burnett called his wife, Deena, after hijackers took control of the plane. During his second call to her, she relayed to him that the Towers of the World Trade Center had collapsed.[7] Upon learning of the situation, Deena, a former flight attendant, recalled her training and urged Burnett to sit quietly and not draw attention to himself, but Burnett instead informed her that he and three other passengers, Mark Bingham, Todd Beamer and Jeremy Glick, were forming a plan to take the plane back from the hijackers, and leading other passengers in this effort.[5][6][8] He also told Deena not to worry.[9] Burnett and several other passengers stormed the cockpit, foiling the hijackers’ plan to crash the plane into the White House or Capitol Building,[5][10] and forced it to crash in a Pennsylvania field, killing all 44 people on board.[5][6]
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Let me make a few points here. I am told that Tom and Deena used to attend Fellowship Bible Church in Little Rock when they were visiting her parents in Little Rock. Deena actually grew up in a Southern Baptist Church like I did. It is a common view in many evangelical circles that the problem of evil must be explained in light of the events of Genesis chapter 3 and the fall of man. You can see this pointed out in the Evangelism Explosion leader’s guide written by Dr. D. James Kennedy. Francis Schaeffer and Ravi Zacharias have written much on this subject too and some their work is below:
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So many tragic things happen in this world and many ask ” How can a good God allow evil and suffering?”
a. Origin of evil— man’s choice- God created a perfect world…
b. Nature of God—He forgives, I John 1:9—He uses tragedy to bring us to Himself, C.S. Lewis, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to arouse a deaf world.”
c. End of it all—Bible teaches that God will one day put an end to all evil, and pain and death. “God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4).As Christians we have this hope of Heaven and eternity. Share how it has made a tremendous difference in your life and that you know for sure that when you die you are going to spend eternity in Heaven. Ask the person, “May I ask you a question? Do you have this hope? Do you know for certain that when you die you are going to Heaven, or is that something you would say you’re still working on?”How could a loving God send people to Hell?
(O.N.E.)
a. Origin of hell—never intended for people. Created for Satan and his demons. Jesus said, “Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt 25:41). Man chooses to sin and ignore God. The penalty is death (eternal separation from God) and, yes, Hell. But God doesn’t send anyone to Hell, we choose it by refusing or ignoring God in attitude and action. b. Nature of God—“ God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). He is so loving that He sent His own Son to die and pay the penalty for our sin so that we could avoid Hell and have the assurance of Heaven. No one in Hell will be able to blame God. He doesn’t send people there, it’s our own choice. We must choose to repent, to stop ignoring God in attitude and action, accepting His salvation and yielding to His leadership.c. End of it all—Bible teaches that God will one day put an end to all evil, pain, death, and penalty of Hell. “God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4).As Christians , we need not worry about Hell. The Bible says, “these things have been written . . . so that you may know you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13). I have complete confidence that when I die, I’m going to Heaven. May I ask you a question?___________________________-
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In his article “A Conversation with an Atheist,” Rick Wade notes:
The problem of evil is a significant moral issue in the atheist’s arsenal. We talk about a God of goodness, but what we see around us is suffering, and a lot of it apparently unjustifiable. Stephanie said, “Disbelief in a personal, loving God as an explanation of the way the world works is reasonable–especially when one considers natural disasters that can’t be blamed on free will and sin.”{17}
One response to the problem of evil is that God sees our freedom to choose as a higher value than protecting people from harm; this is the freewill defense. Stephanie said, however, that natural disasters can’t be blamed on free will and sin. What about this? Is it true that natural disasters can’t be blamed on sin? I replied that they did come into existence because of sin (Genesis 3). We’re told in Romans 8 that creation will one day “be set free from its slavery to corruption,” that it “groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.” The Fall caused the problem, and, in the consummation of the ages, the problem will be fixed.
Second, I noted that on a naturalistic basis, it’s hard to even know what evil is. But the reality of God explains it. As theologian Henri Blocher said,
The sense of evil requires the God of the Bible. In a novel by Joseph Heller, “While rejecting belief in God, the characters in the story find themselves compelled to postulate his existence in order to have an adequate object for their moral indignation.” . . . When you raise this standard objection against God, to whom do you say it, other than this God? Without this God who is sovereign and good, what is the rationale of our complaints? Can we even tell what is evil? Perhaps the late John Lennon understood: “God is a concept by which we measure our pain,” he sang. Might we be coming to the point where the sense of evil is a proof of the existence of God?{18}
So,… if there is no God, there really is no problem of evil. Does the atheist ever find herself shaking her fist at the sky after some catastrophe and demanding an explanation? If there is no God, no one is listening.
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Francis Schaeffer and Gospel of Christ in the pages of the Bible
FRANCIS SCHAEFFER’S WORDS BELOW:
The Personal Origin of Man
The Scriptures tell us that the universe exists and has form and meaning because it was created purposefully by a personal Creator. This being the case, we see that, as we are personal, we are not something strange and out of line with an otherwise impersonal universe. Since we are made in the image of God, we are in line with God. There is continuity, in other words, between ourselves, though finite, and the infinite Creator who stands behind the universe as its Creator and its final source of meaning.
Unlike the evolutionary concept of an impersonal beginning plus time plus chance, the Bible gives an account of man’s origin as a finite person make in God’s image, that is, like God. We see then how man can have personality and dignity and value. Our uniqueness is guaranteed, something which is impossible in the materialistic system. If there is no qualitative distinction between man and other organic life (animals or plants), why should we feel greater concern over the death of a human being than over the death of a laboratory rat? Is man in the end any higher?
Though this is the logical end of the materialistic system, men and women still usually in practice assume that people have some real value. All the way back to the dawn of our investigations in history, we find that man is still man. Wherever we turn, to the caves of the Pyrenees, to the Sumerians in Mesopotamia, and even further back to Neanderthal man’s burying his dead in flower petals, it makes no difference: men everywhere show by their art and their accomplishments that they have been and have considered themselves to be unique. They were unique, and people today are unique. What is wrong is a world-view which fails to explain that uniqueness. All people are unique because they are made in the image of God.
The Bible tells us also, however, that man is flawed. We see this to be the case both within ourselves and in our societies throughout the world. People are noble and people are cruel; people have heights of moral achievement and depths of moral depravity.
But this is not simply an enigma, nor is it explained in terms of “the animal in man.” The Bible explains how man is flawed, without destroying the uniqueness and dignity of man. Man is evil and experiences the results of evil, not because man is non-man but because man is fallen and thus is abnormal.
This is the significance of the third chapter of Genesis. Some time after the original Creation (we do not know how long), man rebelled against God. Being made in the image of God as persons, Adam and Eve were able to make real choices. They had true creativity, not just in the area we call “art” but also in the area of choice. And they used this choice to turn from God as their true integration point. Their ability to choose would have been equally validated if they had chosen not to turn away from God, as their true integration point, but instead they used their choice to try to make themselves autonomous. In doing this, they were acting against the moral absolute of the universe, namely, God’s character – and thus evil among people was born.
The Fall brought not only moral evil but also the abnormality of (1) each person divided from himself or herself; (2) people divided from other people; (3) mankind divided from nature; and (4) nature divided from nature. This was the consequence of the choice made by Adam and Eve some time after the Creation. It was not any original deformity that made them choose in this way. God had not made them robots, and so they had real choice. It is man, therefore, and not God, who is responsible for evil.
We have to keep pointing out, because the idea is strange to a society by which the Bible has been neglected or distorted, that Christianity does not begin with a statement of Christ as Savior. That comes later in its proper setting. Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning God created….” Christianity begins with the personal and infinite God who is the Creator. It goes on to show that man is made in God’s image but then tells us that man is now fallen. It is the rebellion of man that has made the world abnormal. So there is a broken line as we look back to the creation of man by God. A chasm stands there near the beginning, the chasm which is the Fall, the choice to go against God and His Word.
What follows from this is that not everything that happens in the world is “natural.” Unlike modern materialistic thought on both sides of the Iron Curtain, Christianity does not see everything in history as equally “normal.” Because of the abnormality brought about by man, not everything which occurs in history should be there. Thus, not all that history brings forth is right just because it happens, and not all personal drives and motives are equally good. Here, then, is a marked difference between Christianity and almost all other philosophies. Most other philosophies do not have the concept of a present abnormality. Therefore, they hold that everything now is normal; things are now as they always have been.
By contrast, Christians do not see things as if they always have been this way. This is of immense importance in understanding evil in the world. It is possible for Christians to speak of things as absolutely wrong, for they are not original in human society. They are derived from the Fall; they are in that sense “abnormal.” It also means we can stand against what is wrong and cruel without standing against God, for He did not make the world as it now is.
This understanding of the chasm between what mankind and history are now and what they could have been – and should have been, from the way they were made – gives us a real moral framework for life, one which is compatible with our nature and aspirations. So there are “rules for life,’ like the signs on cliff tops which read: DANGER – KEEP OUT. The signs are there to help, not hinder us. God has put them there because to live in this way, according to His rules, is the way for both safety and fulfillment. The God who made us and knows what is for our best good is the same God who gives us His commands. When we break these, it is not only wrong, it is also not for our best good; it is not for our fulfillment as unique persons made in the image of God.
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- Below is a transcript of the discussion between a student at Nottingham and Ravi Zacharias about evil and morality and it also discussed in the video clip above.
Student: There is too much evil in this world; therefore, there cannot be a God!
Speaker: Would you mind if I asked you something? You said, “God cannot exist because there is too much evil.” If there is such a thing as evil, aren’t you assuming that there is such a thing as good?
Student: I guess so.
Speaker: If there is such a thing as good, you must affirm a moral law on the basis of which to differentiate between good and evil.
Speaker: In a debate between the philosopher Frederick Copleston and the atheist Bertrand Russell, Copleston said, “Mr. Russell, you do believe in good and bad, don’t you?” Russell answered, “Yes, I do.” “How do you differentiate between good and bad?” challenged Copleston. Russell shrugged his shoulders and said, “On the basis of feeling – what else?” I must confess, Mr. Copleston was a kindlier gentleman than many others. The appropriate “logical kill” for the moment would have been, “Mr. Russell, in some cultures they love their neighbors; in other cultures they eat them, both on the basis of feeling. Do you have any preference?”
Speaker: When you say there is evil, aren’t you admitting there is good? When you accept the existence of goodness, you must affirm a moral law on the basis of which to differentiate between good and evil. But when you admit to a moral law, you must posit a moral lawgiver. That, however, is
who you are trying to disprove and not prove. For if there is no moral lawgiver, there is no moral law. If there is no moral law, there is no good. If there is no good, there is no evil. What, then, is your question?
Student: What, then, am I asking you?
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The Memphis Commercial Appeal reported on Sept 10:
When Deena Burnett Bailey spoke of the last time she heard her late husband’s voice, the rattle of silverware against china, the whispers and the general noise of a luncheon ceased.
Bailey is the widow of Tom E. Burnett, who led resistance efforts on United Flight 93 on Sept. 11, 2001.
PHOTO BY JIM WEBERBUY THIS PHOTO »Deena Burnett Bailey, widow of Tom Burnett who orchestrated the resistance against the terrorists aboard Flight 93, talks during the Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary’s God Bless America Luncheon on Wednesday at the University of Memphis Holiday Inn.
The story of Burnett’s heroism is still a difficult one to tell, Bailey said, especially so close to the anniversary. But she wants to share it to inspire others, she said.
Bailey is the co-author of “Fighting Back: Living Life Beyond Ourselves,” a book about her husband and the others who took action against the terrorists who held the passengers hostage on Flight 93.
Bailey and former New York City police officer Jim Shepherd spoke Wednesday at a Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary luncheon.
Bailey, now remarried and living in Little Rock, was living in California on Sept. 11. She was waiting with their three daughters for her husband to return from a business trip.
As Bailey watched the two terrorist-controlled planes collide with the World Trade Center in New York, Burnett called and told her he was on a third plane that had been hijacked, and that the hijackers had “already knifed a guy.” He told her to call the authorities.
Bailey called 911 and was eventually connected with the FBI.
Her husband called again, asking questions about the World Trade Center, and then a third time to tell her passengers were hatching a plan to overtake the plane.
He called one last time to say the passengers were waiting until the plane was over a rural area before moving in on the hijackers. While everyone on the airplane was ultimately killed, no one on the ground was injured when Flight 93 went down.
Now, Burnett is honored as an American hero. Bailey says it’s a word her husband felt was overused. She says he believed in making good choices and making a difference in the lives of others.
“Tom’s last words to me were ‘Do something.’ They ring true for each of us to stand up, fight back, do something,” she said.
For Shepherd, who now lives in Memphis, the fateful day began as he drank coffee at the gym. He saw the first airplane circle but assumed it was out of its flight pattern and looking for an airport.
“At the last moment I thought, ‘Oh my God I hope he misses the buildings,’” Shepherd said.
By the time he reached his precinct, the second plane had hit the South Tower.
Later, rescuers found three stories of the building compacted into a pile only 12 feet high, with easily distinguishable layers of concrete floor, carpet and debris, he said.
Shepherd thanked the Salvation Army, which marched quietly into New York and got to work.
“You really felt like you weren’t alone,” he said. “You had another army behind you to help.”
Print-friendly versionFighting Back is the timely and inspiring story of Thomas Burnett, the ringleader of the small group of courageous men that fought back against the terrorists on United Flight 93 on September 11, 2001, that crashed in the fields in Pennsylvania. His wife Deena tells about the incredible details of
that horrific day, the now famous four cell phone calls her husband made to her from the plane, his quick assessment of the alarming suicidal flight plan, and his decision to “do something.” She tells about all that happened to her and her children in the days and months after that devastating day, and how the love, faith and strength of her departed husband helped her to fight back to find purpose and joy in her life again.
She also tells about Tom’s life story, showing how he was an ordinary American who was deeply patriotic, a very good athlete, a loving father and husband, a successful businessman, and a devout Catholic and daily communicant. This powerful book reveals the inspiring courage, character, faith and integrity that Tom Burnett showed in all the aspects of his life as a father, husband and businessman, and how his valor and leadership in that perilous plane were the result of how he lived his life every day. His story will strengthen and inspire all “ordinary” Americans, and Catholics, to imitate this man’s life of commitment to excellence, patriotism, devotion to family, and love of God. It is a story of suffering, sacrifice and of rebirth.
Carl E. Olson, editor of IgnatiusInsight.com, recently spoke with Deena Burnett about her late husband, the events of 9/11, and her faith in God.
IgnatiusInsight.com: When and how did you first decide to write Fighting Back?
Deena Burnett: I was approached right after Tom had died, and my first reaction was, “No, I don’t want to write anything.” But after a few months I realized that it would be important to write it down for my children. In January [of 2006], Anthony [Giombetti] and I got together and started writing. He would interview me and record the interviews, and then he would transcribe those interviews and then we would get together and edit it. That’s really when we started. And the idea was to chronicle Tom’s life and what had happened on September 11th, and talk about what he did and why he did it. In my mind, it was for my children, to record it, so that they would not forget. Then it evolved into something that I believe with inspire the reader to make a difference.
IgnatiusInsight.com: What do you hope readers will learn from reading the book?
Deena Burnett: Actually, just that; I hope that they are inspired to make a difference, that they see the value of having faith in God and know the importance of passing that faith on to their children.
IgnatiusInsight.com: A central theme of the book is that seemingly ordinary people can do extraordinary things. How did Tom exemplify that it in his ordinary life and in his extraordinary actions on Flight 93?
Deena Burnett: I think that is found throughout the whole book. You certainly see that I try to stress that it wasn’t just what he did on September 11th, but that he lived his life with integrity, and I think that it was certainly his upbringing in the Faith that made him kind and attentive and concerned about other people. And I think that those are the values that he brought into the way that he lived, that helped him be a hero everyday of his life, and not just on September 11th.
Deena Burnett: Well, as early as the morning of September 11th, I was requesting to hear the cockpit voice recorder. I felt like it would just give me some answers as to what happened in those final moments. I didn’t know how to go about finding someone who could allow me to hear it. Anyone who had anything to do with the government, I’d just ask them, “Help me.” Very early on I met a lady, Ellen Tauscher, a representative from California, who really took me on as her project and helped me. She helped me go through the channels, writing the letters and making the phone calls and putting the pressure on different channels within the FBI and our government to release that cockpit voice recorder. I have told her so many times, “You know, Ellen, that you did this; it was you, but I’m getting all the credit for it.” And she would just laugh and say, “That’s okay, because I’m just here to help you.” She’s a great lady, absolutely a great lady. She guided me through the channels and made it happen.
We went to New Jersey in April 2002. We were allowed four family members, each family. We went in to hear it and I went through it twice. They had a transcript on the wall that we were able to see and read in sequence with hearing the audio. And I heard Tom’s voice for the first time in several months, and it gave me this incredible sense of peace that I had not expected to find through listening to it. And the peace came because, I think, for the first time in months I knew exactly what had happened by hearing the sounds and being able to visualize what he experienced. After that, it just gave me the energy and the strength to keep moving forward, to keep doing the things that needed to be done, in raising my family and making sure that those responsible for September 11th came to justice.
IgnatiusInsight.com: In the months following 9/11 you gave numerous interviews on high profile televisions programs and dealt with the media quite often. What is your impression, in general of the mainstream media, and how do you think they’ve handled coverage of 9/11 and its aftermath?
Deena Burnett: I think that almost immediately the press was very respectful, and I was incredibly grateful for that. I initially was very afraid of the media. I kind of laugh about that now because I had a degree in journalism, and yet I was scared to death. But they were very respectful. One thing that I have found during the five years is that they have been very interested in different family members — any family members, it doesn’t matter who they are — who had something to do with September 11th, and they have created this aura of casting 9/11 family members as authorities on different issues, whether it be political issues, or issues dealing with the war on terrorism. Anything happening with our government having to do with immigration laws, the transportation department, or the war on terrorism, the first thing they do is pull a 9/11 family member away and start interviewing them: “What do you think?”
They have cast them in roles of authority, and I think that is odd, that there would be so much interest in the opinion of 9/11 family members. You know, we have this one experience to fall back upon; I’m sure there are people who are far better qualified than we are to answer most of the questions the media asks concerning these issues.
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We can fix the IRS problem by going to the flat tax and lowering the size of government. Why the IRS Persecuted the Tea Party and How to Fix the Problem May 27, 2013 by Dan Mitchell Did President Obama and his team of Chicago cronies deliberately target the Tea Party in hopes of thwarting free speech […]
How can a loving God allow evil like the Boston Marathon explosions to happen?
How can a loving God allow evil like the Boston Marathon explosions to happen? Here are some of the details of the explosions: Boston Marathon Explosion 04/15/2013 Published on Apr 15, 2013 Prayers go out to the victims and their families! View this image › Via: @theoriginalwak The Boston Globe is reporting that at least a […]
Answers to historical problems in the Book of Daniel (Part 2)
The Bible and Archaeology (1/5) For many more archaeological evidences in support of the Bible, see Archaeology and the Bible . (There are some great posts on this too at the bottom of this post.) Till Is Batting Around .250 on Daniel by Everette Hatcher III 1999 / March-April Let me address three of the […]
Taking on Ark Times bloggers about abortion on the 40th anniversary date of Roe v. Wade (Part 6) For many pro-abortionists ” …the problem is not determining when actual human life begins, but when the value of that life begins to out weigh other considerations”
Here are videos from the HOW SHOULD WE THEN LIVE? film series: Francis Schaeffer’s “How should we then live?” Video and outline of episode 10 “Final Choices” , episode 9 “The Age of Personal Peace and Affluence”, episode 8 “The Age of Fragmentation”, episode 7 “The Age of Non-Reason” , episode 6 “The Scientific Age” , episode 5 […]
Taking on liberal Ark Times Blogger about America’s debt problem
Is the USA endanger of going broke? The answer is yes, although liberals don’t want to admit it. Elwood from the Arkansas Times Blog objected, take a look below: How many paid attention to Cager Griffin on AETN debates using the familiar FEAR TACTIC of “AMERICA IS BROKE” in danger of becoming another “GREECE?” …Fayetteville […]
The Founders believed national leaders should believe in a God that will punish evil
Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) Roger Ebert called this flick one of Allen’s best. The director, pictured with cinematographer Sven Nykvist on set, was nominated for three Academy Awards, including best director and writing. “Who else but Woody Allen could make a movie in which virtue is punished, evildoing is rewarded and there is a lot of […]
Humanist asserts: “Neither am I an advocate of Hitler; however, by whose criteria is he evil?” (Hitler’s letter from 1919 revealed)
The Associated Press reported today: The signature under the typewritten words on yellowing sheets of nearly century-old paper is unmistakable: Adolf Hitler, with the last few scribbled letters drooping downward. The date is 1919 and, decades before the Holocaust, the 30-year-old German soldier — born in Austria — penned what are believed to be […]
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