Where Were You?

“I remember it very vividly. I was working for IBM at the time, and was on a conference call that had started at 8am that morning that was nearing completion when a colleague from Toronto private-messaged me (yes, we had internal messaging back then) to turn on CNN. I did so at about 8:50am and obviously the first airplane had hit - but I watched the rest of the tragedy unfold before my eyes as presented on TV, switching between the networks to get different perspectives. I tried calling my family in Maryland and Canada, to no avail as the lines were down. Somehow, the internet worked and a colleague in Chicago was able to call my mom in Toronto and let her know I was OK. My home office was in a portion of my home at the time that was surrounded on three sides by rock built into the side of a hill. While I felt safe - I felt a tremendous sense of shock and concern for all those who were in the towers and lost, of course, but the survivors who were many and had to live with the PTSD of being there. I am writing this in 2026 - 25 years since that fateful day and with everything going on in our world and the radicalized middle east - we are reminded of what can happen if we disengage and let hatred fester away from watchful eyes. As I look forward, always taking perspective from 9/11 which was a tragedy and a warning at the same time - we must rebuild institutions like the UN from being ineffective as they have been, into a model that can root out terrorism before it has a chance to manifest in bigger tragedies. My annual way of honoring the memory of 9/11 is to watch and listen to the reading of the names. And each year - especially these last two, the families of those we lost - send us the messages we need to hear. Thanks to them for carrying on this important tradition. Thanks to those who envisions this trail - for giving me another way to honor the memory of 9/11 by pairing my passion for cycling with a trail that memorializes the loss.”

“I was working at a sports facility, setting up equipment for the gymnastics club. One of my co-workers rushed in to tell me a plane had hit a building in America. I had heard of smaller planes hitting buildings before, so I figured I'd learn more about it later and continued with my work. But through the door from the gym hall, I could see the TV in the weights room. That's when I saw what was really happening.”