Remembering 9/11 through the eyes of Central PA

Freedom.

As Americans we've always been taught that this seven letter word is more important to our way of life than any other word in our vocabulary.

There are several quotes that come to mind when we think back in history.

"In the truest sense, freedom cannot be bestowed; it must be achieved," said President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

"Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves," said President Abraham Lincoln.

"Let freedom ring from every mountainside," said Dr. Martin Luther King.

And there are the songs:

"Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose," sang Janice Joplin.

And who could forget the line from the modern day American anthem by Lee Greenwood, "And I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free."

But perhaps the most impactful words about Freedom in most of our lives came on the evening of Sept. 11, 2001 as President George W. Bush took stage during a prime-time speech and said, "Freedom itself was attacked this morning by a faceless coward, and freedom will be defended."

As Americans, as Pennsylvanians, as citizens of Clinton County, we needed to hear his speech.

On that night, it didn't seem to matter if you supported him politically, or what party you belonged to, we were lost and confused and had just had a big slap to our American faces less than 12 hours earlier.

We were scared.

On the sunny morning of Sept. 11, 2001, the skies over central Pennsylvania were blue, and the weather was perfect.

As the reports came in about the first plane, American Airlines Flight 11, hitting the North Tower of the World Trade Center at 8:46 a.m., many hearing the news didn't know any details, and at first thought it was a small plane, and most likely an accident.

But then, at 9:03 a.m., United Airlines Flight 175, flew directly into the South Tower of the World Trade Center making impact between the 77th and 85th floors, killing everyone on board.

Our ears perked up then.

News coverage on every station around the world was focused on New York City and the two smoking buildings, and it didn't take long to realize that something was wrong.

Almost 30 minutes went by and then at 9:37 a.m., United Airlines Flight 77 crashes into The Pentagon.

Now, we…We…"WE" as a collective of American people, were terrified.

And that was without knowing all of what was really unfolding in New York City, and in Washington -- people were trying to get out of the burning buildings by any means possible, while fire fighters and EMS were running into them.

Here in the middle of Pennsylvania, we were worried, but we felt a sense of safety, comfortably surrounded by mountains and valleys and fields, in the middle of nowhere, and especially since we were 200 miles from both epicenters.

We didn't realize that at about 9:05 a.m, as we Clinton Countians watched the special reports, and the footage of the plane hitting the second tower, that United Airlines Flight 93, who had taken off from Newark International Airport at 8:42, bound for San Francisco, was flying over our heads.

Neither those on board, or those of us miles below, could ever have imagined that in 23 minutes, at about 9:28 a.m. as the plane flew across the Pennsylvania border into Ohio, they would be hijacked by four terrorists brandishing box cutters and knives.

The cockpit was breached, the pilots were believed to have been stabbed to death, and the plane made a sharp turn from traveling west, to south east, heading towards Washington, D.C., and, we feared, the White House.

Passengers and crew began to call loved ones and were on the phone with United Airline operators, only to find out they weren't alone and that other planes had also been commandeered by terrorists.

The crew and over 33 civilians on board quickly devised a plan to regain control of the plane, and at 9:57 attack the hijackers, and attempt entry to the cockpit by using a food cart as a battering ram.

At 10:03 a.m., United Airlines Flight 93, would end their journey, by crashing into a field, almost upside down, at 580 miles per hour, in Stonycreek Township, Somerset County, near the small village of Shanksville.

Two pilots, five flight attendants, and 33 passengers would lose their lives.

But not without a fight.

They knew that if they didn't try to do something, worse things were going to happen.

Our very Freedoms were at stake, so they stepped up and paid the ultimate price.

The plane left a large crater in that field, just along a tree line of a lush forest, but a bigger hole in the hearts of the world, who realized the severity of the sacrifice the 40 had made.

Over the years, the hallowed ground has evolved from being surrounded by a simple chain link fence, to the beautiful, respectful, memorial it is today appropriately honoring the heroes who perished there on that sunny day in 2001.

Yes, on Sept. 11, 2001, a group of intruders thought they could make Americans weak, and put a crack in our wall of Freedom, but as Toby Keith says in his song "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue," the "Statue of Liberty started shaking her fist," and he's not wrong.

They made us stronger. And as we mourn those who were scared and lost those 21 years ago, we carry on for them.

Once again, we'll cry as we sit in front of our televisions as the names of the lost are read. The crew and passengers on the planes, the people in the buildings, and the rescue workers, are each remembered.

We'll still be in shock as we watch family members stare at the reflecting pools at the World Trade Center site, the Pentagon Memorial at Arlington, and the wall of names at the Flight 93 Memorial in Shanksville.

The pain and horror of that Tuesday morning comes back pretty quickly when the bells ring for each person lost.

But make no mistake -- we aren't scared anymore.

That only lasted until we got our footing, but once we did, we Americans stood tall and firm, waving our flags from our front porches once again.

While some helped firsthand at the crash sites, the typical citizen was finding their own ways to contribute.

Donating blood, sending supplies or offering their homes to those displaced -- there were just a few of the ways America got better.

So, on Sunday when you wake up, instead of worrying about who your neighbor wants for President in 2024, remember what happened 21 years ago that morning.

Then think about what took place the next day, on Sept. 12, 2001 -- when we left the world know what Freedom looks like, and how if we really try, Americans are still "One Nation."

To quote President Bush, once again, from his 9/11 speech, "None of us will ever forget this day. Yet, we go forward to defend freedom and all that is good and just in our world."

Freedom.

We've heard it, then we lived it, and we have to keep practicing it for all who have sought to keep it as such.

"The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender, or submission," John F. Kennedy

Freedom.

Let it ring.

Never forget Sept. 11, 2001.