9/11: Stories Heard 25 Years Later

 Ever since 8:46 a.m. on September 11, 2001, America changed forever. An American Airlines plane crashed into the North World Trade Center (WTC), beginning a wave of disaster in its wake. 

Just 17 minutes later at 9:03 a.m., a second plane flew straight in the South WTC, then another one slammed into the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m. 

One additional plan was supposed to hit either the United States Capital or the White House, but the passenger on flight 93 took control of the plan and made the plane crash in a field in Pennsylvania at 10:03 a.m., killing everyone on board

September 11 was deemed one of the darkest days in America’s history, even 25 years later. Most students at Centenary University were either too young to remember the day or weren’t even born yet. However, most, if not all, Centenary Faculty have stories and intense memories of that day. 

“That day, I was going to board the morning train, from Passaic, to the World Trade Center,” said Professor Joe Coco, adjunct art professor. “The person I was supposed to meet at the tower called, and told me that a plane hit the north tower. I figured that I would get to Manhattan by bus instead and meet in uptown.  I agreed to wait a little before heading to the bus, when I saw on television the  second plane hit the south tower. If my friend hadn't called to tell me what happened, I would’ve taken the train, and been stuck in Hoboken, likely in the tunnel.”

“At the time, I worked at an investment bank called Bear Stearns in midtown Manhattan on Madison Avenue,” said Professor Timothy Kearney, an assistant professor of business, media, and writing. “That morning, I had a meeting at seven a.m. in the building and afterwards I went to the gym. I then went back to my desk to do some notes when my wife called asking what was happening in the city. I was confused since I didn't hear what happened and see told me a plane hit the north tower. Once the second plane hit, she told me to leave the city and come back to Morris County.

Once I left my building, I noticed how calm everything was considering what happened. I went to get money and buy a pair of sneakers at Dicks Sporting Goods.”

Kearney still has the sneakers that he only wore that day.

“I then went to the Ferry terminal which had a long line,’ said Kearney. “New York Police officers then showed up and had  a group of us go on a school bus. No one ran on the bus, we all walked. The bus took us to the pier on 23 street and I got on a ferry to Weehawken, New Jersey. After that, I got on a bus to Newark, Penn Station so I could get to my car and drive home. I kept trying to call my wife but I couldn’t reach her, so I called my mom who could call her to tell her I was okay.”

“For me, it was a picture-perfect September morning,” said Professor Janet Zatta,  adjunct writing professor, advisor to The Cyclone Chronicle, and advisor to Delta Xi Nu Multicultural Sorority, Inc. “I had just gotten home from a walk with the pup and the phone started buzzing; turn on the TV! In 2001, we got our news from the TV; no cell phones taking videos. Thank goodness. Shock, disbelief, horror. My first thought was to draw my family close. So, one by one, I picked them up from their assorted schools; high school, middle school, grade school. I just wanted them home. The days that followed were a blur as I avoided nearby vistas where you could see the NYC skyline forever changed and shuddered as the names of the people who were never found were whispered.”

These professors not only had personal stories from that day, but also knew people in or around the towers. 

“The story gets better,” said Coco. “After I understood what had happened, I went to my cousin who was panicking, because both her 28 year old sons were already on Wall Street at work. I stayed with her for an hour, until she got the call that they both were okay, but were right near the towers.” 

“My friend, Frank, was in the South Tower that day,” said Kearney. “After the first tower was hit, he was in a group of people who were told it would be safer to go back to their offices. His office was above the strike and went down with the tower. My wife’s friend, who was our neighbor, was also in New York that day. She had to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge to escape the city and got picked up in Bridgewater.”

“I didn't personally lose anyone in the 911 terror attacks’” said Zatta. “That seems to ring hollow as we all lost something that day. At the time, I lived in Essex County, not far from the NJ Transit commuter line into NYC. So many people commute into NY for their jobs. So many people didn't come home that day. Every train station, school, house of worship had people who never returned home. So yes, we all lost someone that day.”

Even 25 years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the memories from that day are still fresh in everyone’s minds. 

“This year, the 25th anniversary, hit me hard,” said Zatta. “I was driving alone down the Garden State Parkway. Another beautiful September day. And there was the NYC skyline, forever changed and never the same. We will never forget but on 911 you can't. The memorials are everywhere—as they should be—on the radio, on TV, on digital media. Still and always, it's a somber, heavy day in our hearts and American history.”