WEBVTT 00:01.440 --> 00:18.270 american 00:18.270 --> 00:20.437 Airlines flight 11 and United Airlines 00:20.437 --> 00:22.659 flight 1 75 were hijacked by terrorists 00:22.659 --> 00:24.881 and flown into the World Trade Center's 00:24.881 --> 00:27.103 twin towers . Well , quite simply as we 00:27.103 --> 00:28.992 begin , our 11 o'clock edition of 00:28.992 --> 00:30.881 eyewitness news . The unthinkable 00:30.881 --> 00:33.214 happened today . The World Trade Center . 00:33.214 --> 00:35.310 Both towers gone , another one , 00:35.310 --> 00:37.900 another plane just hit , right , oh my 00:37.900 --> 00:40.120 gosh ! Another plane has just hit 00:40.210 --> 00:43.890 another building On 9 00:43.890 --> 00:47.630 11 2001 . I was 19 years old and during 00:47.630 --> 00:49.730 my second year at the University of 00:49.730 --> 00:53.400 Maine . And or no , it 00:53.400 --> 00:57.230 was a surreal like experience for me to 00:57.230 --> 00:59.840 be sitting there in a lecture knowing 00:59.840 --> 01:02.062 that there was so many big things going 01:02.062 --> 01:04.480 on in the world . The whole world was 01:04.490 --> 01:06.760 shook . 01:07.140 --> 01:09.590 I'll never forget . We're out in the 01:09.590 --> 01:11.940 parade fields practicing marching . We 01:11.940 --> 01:14.800 all come to a complete stop . All the T 01:14.800 --> 01:17.022 s ran to the center of the parade field 01:17.022 --> 01:19.189 and then they come sprinting back over 01:19.189 --> 01:21.244 towards us , screaming to get to the 01:21.244 --> 01:23.300 dorms , get to the barracks , we all 01:23.300 --> 01:25.467 kind of thought that they were messing 01:25.467 --> 01:27.689 with us so nobody really wanted to move 01:27.689 --> 01:27.240 until they got really close And we 01:27.240 --> 01:29.462 realized that there was something going 01:29.462 --> 01:32.640 on . Our fellow citizens , our way of 01:32.640 --> 01:35.320 life , our very freedom came under 01:35.320 --> 01:38.220 attack . In a series of deliberate and 01:38.220 --> 01:41.370 deadly terrorist acts under attack . 01:41.380 --> 01:43.380 The first hijacked airliner slammed 01:43.380 --> 01:45.602 into the first tower of the World Trade 01:45.602 --> 01:47.713 Center . Shortly before nine and then 01:47.713 --> 01:51.040 moments later a 2nd 7 67 as the world 01:51.040 --> 01:53.390 looked on in horror on live television 01:53.540 --> 01:55.560 slammed into the nation's premier 01:55.560 --> 01:57.660 symbol of american capitalism and 01:57.670 --> 02:00.460 economic might , But this day was far 02:00.460 --> 02:01.050 from over 02:04.340 --> 02:08.200 mm On 02:08.200 --> 02:11.190 that day you know the giant voice was 02:11.200 --> 02:14.440 slowly calling folks out 02:14.450 --> 02:16.610 eventually after about five or 10 02:16.610 --> 02:18.777 minutes I heard my name over the giant 02:18.777 --> 02:20.777 voice to report back to my office . 02:22.840 --> 02:25.118 I got back up into the office on the T . 02:25.118 --> 02:27.850 V . Was the towers burning . 02:29.440 --> 02:31.496 You know at that point we started to 02:31.496 --> 02:35.190 demand aircraft and prepare them for 02:35.190 --> 02:38.150 launch and get into the fight so to 02:38.150 --> 02:40.660 speak . Three members of the main air 02:40.660 --> 02:42.780 guard out of Bangor were flying a 02:42.780 --> 02:44.947 training mission over Long Island on 9 02:44.947 --> 02:47.169 11 . Little did they know that they had 02:47.169 --> 02:49.570 become players in the historic drama as 02:49.570 --> 02:52.110 the Twin Towers fell before their eyes . 02:54.440 --> 02:55.440 Mhm 02:57.440 --> 03:04.370 contacted 03:04.370 --> 03:06.540 my unit which at the time was the 03:06.550 --> 03:09.360 infantry company had a brewer to see 03:09.370 --> 03:11.592 exactly what was going on . If they had 03:11.592 --> 03:14.650 heard anything . Uh at that point they 03:14.650 --> 03:17.160 had heard some things uh they knew that 03:17.160 --> 03:19.220 there was gonna be a request uh for 03:19.220 --> 03:21.890 soldiers to to support and whether or 03:21.890 --> 03:24.001 not I was interested , you know I was 03:24.001 --> 03:26.168 absolutely interested in let them know 03:26.168 --> 03:28.660 to call me at any time . We really 03:28.660 --> 03:31.800 didn't know who it was 03:31.810 --> 03:35.010 but there was just a sense of needing 03:35.010 --> 03:37.060 to do something . Uh you know the 03:37.060 --> 03:40.700 images on tv were very shocking . 03:40.710 --> 03:43.840 So having been in the military at that 03:43.840 --> 03:46.830 point for about nine years I've done a 03:46.830 --> 03:48.997 lot of different types of training . I 03:48.997 --> 03:50.941 was definitely ready to support my 03:50.941 --> 03:53.940 nation . Anyway , that was needed . 03:53.950 --> 03:56.240 Whether that was at the home front or 03:56.240 --> 03:58.462 deploying , uh , you know , I was ready 03:58.462 --> 03:59.960 to go . 04:00.240 --> 04:04.060 So the rest of time through basic 04:04.060 --> 04:06.116 training and tech school , They were 04:06.116 --> 04:08.227 preaching us , you know , we're going 04:08.227 --> 04:10.393 to war , we're gonna be fighting in Al 04:10.393 --> 04:12.560 Qaeda two weeks after returning home 04:12.560 --> 04:14.671 from basic training , technical would 04:14.671 --> 04:16.671 be mobilized and shortly thereafter 04:16.671 --> 04:16.560 ship to the Middle East . 04:17.740 --> 04:22.850 I 04:22.860 --> 04:25.027 was one of the cruise that was cruel , 04:25.027 --> 04:28.650 rested , ready to go . So went out , 04:28.660 --> 04:30.604 spun the jet up , got it ready for 04:30.604 --> 04:32.493 takeoff . We got called back into 04:32.493 --> 04:34.660 operations before we actually launched 04:34.660 --> 04:36.382 that day and we traded out our 04:36.382 --> 04:39.690 peacetime communications gear for , for 04:39.690 --> 04:42.460 wartime year . And I think that's at 04:42.460 --> 04:44.690 that point , we knew something was up 04:44.700 --> 04:46.700 and something was different because 04:46.700 --> 04:48.910 that was the first time that we , we 04:48.910 --> 04:51.770 actually used the wartime calms . Um , 04:51.780 --> 04:54.720 you know , over the United States , we 04:54.720 --> 04:56.998 knew things were serious at that point . 04:56.998 --> 04:59.109 And it was while we were doing that , 04:59.109 --> 05:01.790 that we actually got the call to launch . 05:01.800 --> 05:04.820 So we went down , scrambled and took 05:04.820 --> 05:06.876 off and started our mission for that 05:06.876 --> 05:07.876 day . 05:07.876 --> 05:14.700 A 05:14.710 --> 05:17.430 senior in high school around morning 05:17.430 --> 05:19.830 break , one of our fellow teammates 05:19.830 --> 05:21.941 came in and said that the trade tower 05:21.941 --> 05:24.163 had been hit by an airplane . It didn't 05:24.163 --> 05:26.274 really register what that , what that 05:26.274 --> 05:28.108 meant . We needed to go into the 05:28.108 --> 05:29.719 library where there was a tv 05:29.719 --> 05:31.663 broadcasting the news and I didn't 05:31.663 --> 05:34.060 really understand what , what that , 05:34.440 --> 05:36.960 what that day meant until later on 05:37.340 --> 05:39.396 decided to join as actually in basic 05:39.396 --> 05:43.240 training , Uh , 11 , 2002 . Um , and I 05:43.240 --> 05:45.720 think that's when it really clicked The 05:45.730 --> 05:47.674 impact of that day and how it will 05:47.674 --> 05:49.397 affect the rest of my career . 05:49.397 --> 05:53.370 343 firefighters that passed away , 05:53.370 --> 05:55.630 they just woke up to , To do their job 05:55.630 --> 05:57.960 that day for me , as a as a military 05:57.960 --> 05:59.960 firefighter for the past 19 years , 06:00.340 --> 06:02.562 that has certainly affected my career , 06:02.562 --> 06:06.160 carrying the tradition 06:06.640 --> 06:09.200 that our brothers and sisters did years 06:09.200 --> 06:09.550 ago , 06:14.340 --> 06:17.480 I was in the third grade , I was living 06:17.480 --> 06:19.890 in mulberry florida , attending 06:19.900 --> 06:22.910 Kingsford elementary School when the 06:22.910 --> 06:26.730 towers were hit was pretty 06:26.730 --> 06:30.370 confused . The teachers were kind of 06:30.380 --> 06:32.340 a little hysterical and then they 06:32.340 --> 06:34.284 started bringing in the TVs to our 06:34.284 --> 06:36.900 classroom and turning them on and 06:36.910 --> 06:39.132 showing us what was going on and trying 06:39.132 --> 06:41.299 to explain it to us as a younger kid , 06:41.299 --> 06:43.530 you can't really grasp what was exactly 06:43.530 --> 06:45.586 going on , but you could see kind of 06:45.586 --> 06:47.590 the fear in the teachers , which is 06:47.590 --> 06:49.368 something you don't usually see 06:57.240 --> 06:59.240 a lot of my friends that were older 06:59.240 --> 07:01.351 than me going out and they joined and 07:01.351 --> 07:03.573 they were getting deployed . I just , I 07:03.573 --> 07:05.600 wanted to be a part of the 07:05.610 --> 07:07.832 organizations that are helping keep our 07:07.832 --> 07:08.832 borders 07:08.832 --> 07:15.600 safe 07:52.940 --> 07:56.830 post 9 11 , we went into 24 07:56.830 --> 07:59.460 7 ox . Um , and we really haven't 07:59.460 --> 08:02.550 slowed down much since operationally in 08:02.550 --> 08:05.660 the fight here defending the homeland 08:06.240 --> 08:09.760 as well as out in the cars 08:10.840 --> 08:12.562 doing business there as well . 08:18.240 --> 08:21.350 What since 9 11 I've deployed three 08:21.350 --> 08:23.720 times in support of the nation , twice 08:23.720 --> 08:25.942 to Afghanistan and wants to Iraq and to 08:25.942 --> 08:27.942 this day , you know , if the nation 08:27.942 --> 08:30.164 calls me , I'm ready to deploy , it can 08:30.164 --> 08:31.442 be in effect on family 08:33.740 --> 08:36.570 being there and fulfilling my duty as a 08:36.570 --> 08:39.940 soldier was a top priority . And 08:39.950 --> 08:42.280 thankfully my family understood that 08:42.280 --> 08:44.502 and supported me throughout each one of 08:44.502 --> 08:45.502 those deployments 08:57.010 --> 09:00.880 911 has become one of 09:00.880 --> 09:03.550 these symbolic moments for America . An 09:03.550 --> 09:05.439 inflection point in the country's 09:05.439 --> 09:07.900 history . It was and it remains a 09:07.900 --> 09:11.010 moment of deep trauma . 09:11.110 --> 09:14.820 Almost 17 years now I've been in , 09:15.140 --> 09:18.060 when I joined , It was basically a year 09:18.060 --> 09:19.838 later I knew that I was getting 09:19.838 --> 09:22.230 mobilized to go to Afghanistan , early 09:22.230 --> 09:24.340 20s , going overseas into combat 09:24.340 --> 09:27.660 theater . Obviously from those 09:27.660 --> 09:31.630 experiences you grow , you build the 09:31.630 --> 09:34.220 camaraderie in the service is one of 09:34.220 --> 09:37.460 the biggest pieces that I love about it . 09:39.540 --> 09:43.530 I'm extremely proud . I would like to 09:43.530 --> 09:45.586 take this opportunity to thank every 09:45.586 --> 09:47.697 single person that has chose to serve 09:47.697 --> 09:49.863 that is currently serving or served in 09:49.863 --> 09:51.919 the past that I truly do . Thank you 09:51.919 --> 09:55.150 and I'm proud to be a brother in arms 09:55.160 --> 09:57.216 with , with anybody who has served , 09:59.440 --> 10:01.107 you know , the maniacs have a 10:01.107 --> 10:03.700 reputation here in the D . O . D . As 10:03.710 --> 10:06.720 as being experts at our craft and we've 10:06.720 --> 10:08.664 been right there with our activity 10:08.664 --> 10:10.720 counterparts throughout the world in 10:10.720 --> 10:13.050 many different Kors both aviation 10:13.050 --> 10:15.161 packages as well as the expeditionary 10:15.161 --> 10:18.020 combat support folks . Mm . And 10:18.030 --> 10:20.660 anywhere we go we bring that maniac 10:20.660 --> 10:22.771 pride maniac traditional excellence , 10:22.771 --> 10:24.993 incredible amount of pride and what the 10:24.993 --> 10:27.049 organization has been able to do and 10:27.049 --> 10:29.160 what will continue to do in the years 10:29.160 --> 10:31.160 to come . These acts of mass murder 10:31.160 --> 10:33.216 were intended to frighten our nation 10:33.216 --> 10:35.800 into chaos and retreat but they have 10:35.800 --> 10:38.550 failed . Our country is strong . 10:39.440 --> 10:41.218 Terrorist attacks can shake the 10:41.218 --> 10:43.273 foundations of our biggest buildings 10:44.040 --> 10:46.262 but they cannot touch the foundation of 10:46.262 --> 10:47.262 America . 10:59.040 --> 10:59.700 Yeah 11:20.710 --> 11:24.190 20 11:24.190 --> 11:26.980 years since 9 11 . Never 11:26.980 --> 11:29.870 forget some of the stories that you 11:29.870 --> 11:31.870 heard . There's a lot of folks that 11:31.870 --> 11:33.981 haven't forgotten where they were and 11:33.981 --> 11:36.203 what it has meant to their careers into 11:36.203 --> 11:38.450 their lives . So primarily my message 11:38.450 --> 11:40.672 today is to say thank you and thank you 11:40.672 --> 11:43.950 for your service but thank you for not 11:43.950 --> 11:46.172 forgetting thank you for not forgetting 11:46.172 --> 11:48.117 that it really was a day about the 11:48.117 --> 11:50.283 first responders and about the U . S . 11:50.283 --> 11:52.228 Citizens that lost their lives and 11:52.228 --> 11:54.339 citizens from all over the world that 11:54.339 --> 11:56.339 lost their lives that day but never 11:56.339 --> 11:59.750 forget that you've chosen to serve and 11:59.750 --> 12:01.750 many of our members of the army and 12:01.750 --> 12:04.690 International Guard . Never remember 12:04.690 --> 12:07.000 that day other than seeing it on tv and 12:07.000 --> 12:09.222 seeing the pictures like you've seen in 12:09.222 --> 12:11.910 this video but you still chose to serve . 12:11.920 --> 12:14.087 You still chose to make a difference . 12:14.087 --> 12:16.270 Yet . That decision to serve still 12:16.270 --> 12:19.160 meant we were a nation at war this year . 12:19.160 --> 12:21.300 That's different . You know as we've 12:21.300 --> 12:23.356 pulled troops and watched on tv what 12:23.356 --> 12:25.467 happened in Afghanistan . There are a 12:25.467 --> 12:27.522 lot of emotions . I know we all have 12:27.522 --> 12:29.633 them . We all have different emotions 12:29.633 --> 12:31.911 uh what we saw over the last few weeks . 12:31.911 --> 12:34.440 But again , I want to remind you that 12:34.440 --> 12:36.850 your service made a difference and it 12:36.850 --> 12:39.072 will continue to make a difference . As 12:39.072 --> 12:41.290 we remember 9-11 and we remember the 12:41.290 --> 12:43.401 first responders in our lost citizens 12:43.401 --> 12:45.568 and we remember how it changed our own 12:45.568 --> 12:48.070 careers . Mine included . Never forget 12:48.080 --> 12:50.024 that your service matters and will 12:50.024 --> 12:51.430 continue into the future .