Lauren Doherty, Editor-in-Chief
@ldohertycourant
Twenty years ago, Americans were paralyzed in horror as NYC’s World Trade Center towers collapsed. Airplanes hijacked by the al-Qaeda terrorist group crashed into the buildings, tragically taking the lives of 2,996 people. The death toll only continued to rise in the following years as first responders and other civilians at the scene began to face terminal ilnesses from inhaling the pollutants.
However, what is a distinct memory for older generartions is now a history lesson for students at NCHS, written into our textbooks next to other tragic American events. Guidelines implemented by The Patriot Act, like increased airline security and heightened law enforcement, are all us post-9/11 babies have ever known.
We will never fully understand the feeling of watching with wide eyes as buildings filled with thousands of civilians toppled to the ground. We will never experience the anxiety that those with friends or relatives in the area felt, or the sinking feeling of knowing you could’ve been in the building yourself.
9/11 evokes many emotions for those connected to the day. Stories passed around in whispers and moments of silence remind us all of what happened now 20 years ago.
Frank Fetchet lost his son, Brad, an NCHS Class of 1995 graduate, in the 9/11 attacks. Sitting in his office on the 89th floor of the South Tower, Brad was working in equity sales after graduating from Bucknell University. “The North Tower was hit first and Brad actually called me to say ‘Dad, something really freaky happened. The other tower got hit, debris is falling, and it looks like we’ll be okay, they’re saying it’s pilot error, it’s a bright sunny day,’” Mr. Fetchet said. “They just didn’t know at that point.”
The Fetchet family went on to establish the non-profit organization Voices Center for Resiliency, formerly known as Voices of September 11th. “Don’t dwell on the horror of 9/11 but learn about the power of resiliency and what it could mean for you as a young adult,” Mr. Fetchet said. “What can you take with you to make a difference and give back, pay it forward if you will.”
Voices Center for Resiliency participates in NCHS’ senior internship program each year, taking on as many as four or five interns a year. “We try to leave our interns with the thought of as they go to the next stage in life in college and onto their professional lives to make room for giving back,” Mr. Fetchet said.
Assistant Principal Ari Rothman was a social studies administrator at Greenwich High School in September 2001. From formerly working in the history department, he recognizes the events evolving place in American history. “I think it’s stories, I think for [young people]it’s not right or wrong, it’s just you don’t know what life was like before then. So you have no basis of comparison,” Mr. Rothman said. “There’s a memory and then there’s the history that goes with it.”
“As long as people are constructive and can find a lesson or meaning in [9/11], that to me is probably the big lesson of things like this,” Mr. Rothman said.
It’s undeniable that 9/11 changed the course of American history, but how can one properly grasp that if they never knew life before it? Perhaps, we never truly will. But, what may be even more important to take away from the event is the lessons of unity, resiliency, and heroism that came from that day.
New Canaan Fire Department Chief John Hennessey was a firefighter in Stamford at the time of the attacks. Stamford had a mutual aid pact with the city of New York, so the team sent a task force to the scene along with ambulances from New Canaan Emergency Medical Department. The force got as far as Westchester county before they weren’t needed. There was also a mutual aid pact with Greenwich Hospital and Stamford Hospital for walking wounded people to get medical help, but there were few such casualties on 9/11. “I spent most of the day just organzing stuff,” Chief Hennessey said. “We didn’t know what was going to happen.”
The terrorist attacks sparked a new fear in many Americans and required expanded first responder training and security measures in hope of preventing another attack. “We were never really prepared to deal with terrorist attacks in this country,” Chief Hennessey said. “So we have been preparing ever since to deal with different kinds of crises like that… how to cope with it, what the plan of action would be.”
The bravery of those who fled to the scene in 2001 is unparalleled, and while we hope their legacy is celebrated each year with the anniversary of 9/11, the two decade mark encourages even deeper reflection, remembrence, and resiliency.
“Life won’t always be all positive, and it’s a matter of understanding that life is going to throw us incidents and challenges,” Mr. Fetchet said. “It’s how we are going to handle it and how we want to build our own personal resilience.”
The heartbreaking day of September 11 will be remembered each year: it’s a tearful memory for some and an American history lesson for others. But, for both generations, it’s a symbol of American unity, heroism, and resilience.
