A staff sergeant searches a car entering Andrews Air Force Base on Sept. 11, 2001 after security is increased.
(Photo: MSGT Raul Navas, USAF) |
Memorial service at the University of Maryland on Sept. 12, 2001.
(Photo: John T. Consoli) 
9/11 Memorial of Maryland in Baltimore, MD.
(Photo: Elvert Barnes, Flickr Creative Commons) |
"Where were you on 9/11?" as remembered by those in Maryland that day.
Maryland resident John reflects on how the Naval Academy in Annapolis reacted to Pearl Harbor and the thoughts of many there that 9/11 would bring a similar fate for the cadets.
1. So when 9/11 actually happened I was neither at work or at home, I was in a park with my children on a nature tour. The park ranger came up and said,
'Hey, the Pentagon's been hit by a plane, we're shutting the park down and everybody needs to go home.'
When I climbed into the truck, I turned on the radio and heard it was a large commercial jet. I immediately called my best friend's wife asI knew he was working at the Pentagon. She could not get ahold of him and she was worried for his wellbeing. He had been working on renovating the Pentagon. Later, we discovered that the wedge that they had just finished was the wedge that was hit. If it hadn't been for the upgrades for potential truck bombings, the damage would have been much more severe.
So I went home with my kids, we hunkered down, we watched the news and tried to catch up on what was going on. I was still in the Navy but was told not to come back to work until the extent of the threat was well understood. There was no reason to risk personnel, we had lost 8 of our coworkers in the Pentagon that day. So that's what I did, about 3 weeks later I was here at the Naval Academy where I was a graduate at a class reunion and in a conversation with those folks I discovered that one of my classmates had actually been on the 5th floor of the wedge that was hit. He and his staff were able to evacuate and just minutes later that entire floor collapsed into the crash site. So, he did survive it but what it led to was a long and steady conversation through that weekend about what the future holds for us.
What's the threat?
What's the response?
I was reminded that during WWII after Pearl Harbor happened, the Naval Academy immediately graduated the senior class and accelerated the process of graduation for each of the subsequent classes to get the most shipsmen to sea as possible. So there was some thought that maybe the Naval Academy would do that, I don't believe that came to pass but it was certainly on everyone's mind.
How do I get into the fray?
How do I get into the battle?
How do I do something to show how much I care for this country?
- John
'Hey, the Pentagon's been hit by a plane, we're shutting the park down and everybody needs to go home.'
When I climbed into the truck, I turned on the radio and heard it was a large commercial jet. I immediately called my best friend's wife asI knew he was working at the Pentagon. She could not get ahold of him and she was worried for his wellbeing. He had been working on renovating the Pentagon. Later, we discovered that the wedge that they had just finished was the wedge that was hit. If it hadn't been for the upgrades for potential truck bombings, the damage would have been much more severe.
So I went home with my kids, we hunkered down, we watched the news and tried to catch up on what was going on. I was still in the Navy but was told not to come back to work until the extent of the threat was well understood. There was no reason to risk personnel, we had lost 8 of our coworkers in the Pentagon that day. So that's what I did, about 3 weeks later I was here at the Naval Academy where I was a graduate at a class reunion and in a conversation with those folks I discovered that one of my classmates had actually been on the 5th floor of the wedge that was hit. He and his staff were able to evacuate and just minutes later that entire floor collapsed into the crash site. So, he did survive it but what it led to was a long and steady conversation through that weekend about what the future holds for us.
What's the threat?
What's the response?
I was reminded that during WWII after Pearl Harbor happened, the Naval Academy immediately graduated the senior class and accelerated the process of graduation for each of the subsequent classes to get the most shipsmen to sea as possible. So there was some thought that maybe the Naval Academy would do that, I don't believe that came to pass but it was certainly on everyone's mind.
How do I get into the fray?
How do I get into the battle?
How do I do something to show how much I care for this country?
- John
Written Stories
1. "I was in science class at Arbutus Middle School, they were calling names over the announcements and I honestly thought nothing of it. Some of them were kids that always got their names called for making trouble. When my name was called I didn't know why. If I ever did make trouble it's nothing I'd get sent to the office over so I'm thinking,
'Oh crud, what'd I do?'
Turns out it was my cousin coming to pick me up. She brought me to her car, up until then I had no idea what was going on.
Then I heard a plane had hit the World Trade Center in New York and I was confused.
Then I heard they were hijacked and I was scared.
I was told they might try to target schools next so she took me home.
That day made me think of what I wanted to do in life and I decided to join the Maryland Army National Guard.
I'll never forget."
- B. W.
'Oh crud, what'd I do?'
Turns out it was my cousin coming to pick me up. She brought me to her car, up until then I had no idea what was going on.
Then I heard a plane had hit the World Trade Center in New York and I was confused.
Then I heard they were hijacked and I was scared.
I was told they might try to target schools next so she took me home.
That day made me think of what I wanted to do in life and I decided to join the Maryland Army National Guard.
I'll never forget."
- B. W.
2. "I was in middle school. they tried to keep us in the dark aside from the occasional student being called to the principal's office. I remember one or two students running crying in the hallway, and later found out they had family members in the Pentagon.
I take it the teachers weren't supposed to say anything as they turned off the TVs as soon as we got to class, but my shop teacher went ahead and filled us in. He talked it over with us, had us share our feelings and said if anyone needed to make a call we could step out to do so.
Some kids were upset, some were curious (asking how it happened, why, what'll happen if anything happens here, etc)
I was... I don't know, indifferent? I was worried about my mom who worked in DC, but she'd left a message on my phone saying she was fine.
I do recall how our day to day changed. There was an air of uncertainty in the school. Like, we had to bring blankets/pillows and canned goods to keep in our lockers. And the school had an assembly about what to do in an emergency. My mom and I laid out a plan of who to call and go to in case I couldn't get in touch with her.
It was a little anxious for the rest of the school year, but they got things back to some semblance of normalcy."
- C. M.
I take it the teachers weren't supposed to say anything as they turned off the TVs as soon as we got to class, but my shop teacher went ahead and filled us in. He talked it over with us, had us share our feelings and said if anyone needed to make a call we could step out to do so.
Some kids were upset, some were curious (asking how it happened, why, what'll happen if anything happens here, etc)
I was... I don't know, indifferent? I was worried about my mom who worked in DC, but she'd left a message on my phone saying she was fine.
I do recall how our day to day changed. There was an air of uncertainty in the school. Like, we had to bring blankets/pillows and canned goods to keep in our lockers. And the school had an assembly about what to do in an emergency. My mom and I laid out a plan of who to call and go to in case I couldn't get in touch with her.
It was a little anxious for the rest of the school year, but they got things back to some semblance of normalcy."
- C. M.
3. "I was in 6th grade reading class in Rockville. The class had barely begun before our teacher Mr. Davis got pulled to the door by a staff member. Mr. Davis somberly came back inside and turned on the radio as he explained to us that two planes had brought down the Twin Towers in New York and we may be sent home.
The next thing I remember, is someone coming over the intercom, telling us to report to our assigned buses. I remember there was a lot of traffic. I think everyone was trying to get home.
By the time I made it home, my whole family was in the living room watching the news. My mom was so worried, she came up and hugged me hard. My stepdad, who worked in DC and occasionally in the Pentagon, said he was across the Potomac when he saw the plane hit. The incident scarred my mom so much that I got my first cell phone at the age of 11 (which she thanked God I had in the following years when the DC sniper happened).
I don't remember much after that except being in the kitchen days after watching the missiles we fired into the Middle East on the small TV on top of our fridge.
My parents watched it gravely while making dinner, but I had no idea that it was the start of a long, terrible war."
- Lily McGrath
The next thing I remember, is someone coming over the intercom, telling us to report to our assigned buses. I remember there was a lot of traffic. I think everyone was trying to get home.
By the time I made it home, my whole family was in the living room watching the news. My mom was so worried, she came up and hugged me hard. My stepdad, who worked in DC and occasionally in the Pentagon, said he was across the Potomac when he saw the plane hit. The incident scarred my mom so much that I got my first cell phone at the age of 11 (which she thanked God I had in the following years when the DC sniper happened).
I don't remember much after that except being in the kitchen days after watching the missiles we fired into the Middle East on the small TV on top of our fridge.
My parents watched it gravely while making dinner, but I had no idea that it was the start of a long, terrible war."
- Lily McGrath
4. "I was in second grade at the time. We had just listened to the morning announcements when the teacher turned on the news for a brief moment. I remember hearing something about an emergency, but we didn't see the towers at that point.
We were told to get ready to go home and were led to the buses fire drill style.
I spent the rest of the morning watching the exciting explosions and frantic news staff on TV at my neighbors place."
- H. A.
We were told to get ready to go home and were led to the buses fire drill style.
I spent the rest of the morning watching the exciting explosions and frantic news staff on TV at my neighbors place."
- H. A.
5. "To set the scene, I'm going to go back before 9/11/2001. I was in my last year of elementary school in 2000 and we had just survived the Y2K Scare that we didn't understand but heard all about. A few months later Joesph Palczynski happened. He invaded elementary schools in our area and shot children my age and younger. He held a family hostage for nearly 4 days before police were finally able to gun him down. I remember seeing his face on the news and talking to people who knew his family who thought he looked so normal. Maryland schools changed forever.
With the way 2000 started, I was not enthusiastic about 2001. I entered into 6th grade. I didn't get accepted into a magnet school, so I was going to a local middle school that had a bad reputation. It was my first time being in a different school than my younger brother, a year behind me. Within the first week I lost all my friends & experienced bullying for the first time. 2001 was gearing up to be a pretty awful year before we even got to September.
On 9/11, there was some kind of announcement to gather in the gymnasium. To get to the gym, our class had to walk by the main office that was all large windowed walls. As we walked passed it, I saw the admins and a few parents all gathered around a television watching something - some action movie with a plane flying into a building. They looked upset so I guessed it was a bad movie.
I noticed my shoe was untied & stopped to fix it. The other students just moved around me. A really flustered teacher tapped me on the shoulder, asked if I was okay and rushed me along saying I could tie my shoe at the gym.
'Just walk carefully.'
With the way 2000 started, I was not enthusiastic about 2001. I entered into 6th grade. I didn't get accepted into a magnet school, so I was going to a local middle school that had a bad reputation. It was my first time being in a different school than my younger brother, a year behind me. Within the first week I lost all my friends & experienced bullying for the first time. 2001 was gearing up to be a pretty awful year before we even got to September.
On 9/11, there was some kind of announcement to gather in the gymnasium. To get to the gym, our class had to walk by the main office that was all large windowed walls. As we walked passed it, I saw the admins and a few parents all gathered around a television watching something - some action movie with a plane flying into a building. They looked upset so I guessed it was a bad movie.
I noticed my shoe was untied & stopped to fix it. The other students just moved around me. A really flustered teacher tapped me on the shoulder, asked if I was okay and rushed me along saying I could tie my shoe at the gym.
'Just walk carefully.'
|
For some reason, her saying that really stuck with me.
When we got to the gym all the bleachers were pulled out like they did for our big school meetings. We sat with our classes & waited. I don't know how long we sat there, but it felt like hours. At first, it was fun. I read a Nancy Drew book while the gym was loud with chatter. So much time had passed and none of the adults were saying anything! Teachers were scared, some crying, and we didn't know why. People started whispering about a bomb threat. It got to all of us. Scared kids swore they could hear a ticking sound under the bleachers, and cried about how they didn't want to die. Others rumors were about a school shooter. There was a lot of, 'We're going to be next.' I was shaking, wanting to see my brother. I still have nightmares about this long section of time. Eventually, they started calling kids' names. their parents were there to pick them up. Something bad had happened & they were calling all of our parents to come pick us up. The rest of us would be sorted out if our parents couldn't arrange to get us. School was closing early but no one seemed happy about it. One by one, students were leaving. Some buses were arranged to pick up students that lived further away. I think there was only 20 kids out of the whole school that didn't get picked up by parents, myself included. |
I got off the bus and walked home and thinking,
'Just walk carefully.'
I double locked the door once I was inside and just waited for my brother to get home, like I always did. I was kicking myself for not getting that Goosebumps book from the library after I finished my Nancy Drew book.
I don't remember my brother talking much when he got home. I don't remember my mom or grandmom talking much either.
They were just glued to the television, like it always was. Things pretty much were the same as they always were at home but something felt wrong. Everything was out of place somehow but I didn't know why. For me, the next few days were almost worse than 9/11 itself."
- A. C.
'Just walk carefully.'
I double locked the door once I was inside and just waited for my brother to get home, like I always did. I was kicking myself for not getting that Goosebumps book from the library after I finished my Nancy Drew book.
I don't remember my brother talking much when he got home. I don't remember my mom or grandmom talking much either.
They were just glued to the television, like it always was. Things pretty much were the same as they always were at home but something felt wrong. Everything was out of place somehow but I didn't know why. For me, the next few days were almost worse than 9/11 itself."
- A. C.
6. "My mom picked up my sister and me from school early that day. We knew something was wrong, but didn't know what. Mom told us of a terrorist attack in New York and also mentioned that my step-grandfather was celebrating his birthday that day. I suppose Mom had planned for us to visit my grandmother and him, but wasn't sure. I misheard her, so thought my he was in a hospital in New York. Eleven-year-old me was scared and wanted to be with him, even though we were in Maryland. How we would get there? I didn't know and following further inquiries I was relieved to know my grandparents were safe and well in Maryland.
We spent the afternoon watching cartoons and the news as we contacted affected family members to determine their safety and welfare. Thank God, they were safe and well! At least, we had nothing to fear in that respect and understood we were fortunate, as we did find we had loved ones who lost loved ones in the coming days.....To this day, I thank God for that and pray for all changed forever...
In the following days, I saw more patriotism than ever before at school and elsewhere, learned a bit about Islam, and began to understand the importance of political engagement and related activities. Other than that, everything was as normal as could be in a crisis. My school handled the situation in a professional, dignified, and compassionate manner just as my family had and I am grateful for that.
May we never forget the lessons we as a nation learned that day and cherish every moment!"
- Michelle Czarnecki
We spent the afternoon watching cartoons and the news as we contacted affected family members to determine their safety and welfare. Thank God, they were safe and well! At least, we had nothing to fear in that respect and understood we were fortunate, as we did find we had loved ones who lost loved ones in the coming days.....To this day, I thank God for that and pray for all changed forever...
In the following days, I saw more patriotism than ever before at school and elsewhere, learned a bit about Islam, and began to understand the importance of political engagement and related activities. Other than that, everything was as normal as could be in a crisis. My school handled the situation in a professional, dignified, and compassionate manner just as my family had and I am grateful for that.
May we never forget the lessons we as a nation learned that day and cherish every moment!"
- Michelle Czarnecki
7. "I was in school in Eldersburg, and because it was near some federal sites the school administration decided to lock down the school and keep all the kids inside. My mom wasn't having any of that. As soon as she heard what happened in New York, she left work immediately and came to pick me up. She argued with the school administration who wanted to keep me with the other kids on the grounds.
When we got home, I saw recorded footage being broadcast of what happened but was too young to understand what was really happening."
- Logan Humphries-Russ
When we got home, I saw recorded footage being broadcast of what happened but was too young to understand what was really happening."
- Logan Humphries-Russ
8. "I was 13 years old, living in Elkridge. I was in my 9th grade English Honors class, second period, at my high school in Columbia. We were going over some worksheets when my teacher got called out into the hallway. After a few minutes, she came back in and put the TV on. That was a little unusual, but we had morning announcements over the television so I thought they might be broadcasting something. She flipped around the channels, and I thought a movie was playing because all I see is a skyscraper. I happened to glance up, just as the second plane hit.
'Oh, this isn't a movie.'
For the rest of the day, we moved from one class to another and all we did was watch the TV and talk. Our school let out 30 minutes early, and I remember both of my parents were home when I got in: Mom was working for the government at the time, and Dad was working nights at a grocery store, but he was up. We went over to my friend's house because they had cable and we didn't. Our two sets of parents were talking and watching the news in the living room while my friend, her younger brother and I went down to the basement. I flipped through all the channels and every single one had coverage. The only two that didn't were Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network, but they had a news ticker at the bottom of the screen.
For myself, school and daily life went back to normal pretty quickly. The one thing I do remember was that everything was so quiet for such a long time. We lived about five minutes away from Baltimore-Washington International Airport and we were under a flight path. Growing up, I got used to the flights overhead, but I noticed immediately when I stopped hearing them.
Looking back, it's almost a completely different world that we lived in pre-9/11 to what we have now. All of my cousins were born after 9/11. My husband and his twin brother had turned 21 the month before the attacks, and they were members of the Army. Prior to this, they had been expecting to deploy to Prague or Bosnia for any military action.
But 9/11 changed everything."
- Megan Hannon
'Oh, this isn't a movie.'
For the rest of the day, we moved from one class to another and all we did was watch the TV and talk. Our school let out 30 minutes early, and I remember both of my parents were home when I got in: Mom was working for the government at the time, and Dad was working nights at a grocery store, but he was up. We went over to my friend's house because they had cable and we didn't. Our two sets of parents were talking and watching the news in the living room while my friend, her younger brother and I went down to the basement. I flipped through all the channels and every single one had coverage. The only two that didn't were Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network, but they had a news ticker at the bottom of the screen.
For myself, school and daily life went back to normal pretty quickly. The one thing I do remember was that everything was so quiet for such a long time. We lived about five minutes away from Baltimore-Washington International Airport and we were under a flight path. Growing up, I got used to the flights overhead, but I noticed immediately when I stopped hearing them.
Looking back, it's almost a completely different world that we lived in pre-9/11 to what we have now. All of my cousins were born after 9/11. My husband and his twin brother had turned 21 the month before the attacks, and they were members of the Army. Prior to this, they had been expecting to deploy to Prague or Bosnia for any military action.
But 9/11 changed everything."
- Megan Hannon
9. "I was in kindergarten in Thurmont where Camp David is. The whole northern part of Frederick County was terrified but my parents made the executive decision to leave me in primary school, thinking it was safer.
About 3/4th of my class went home early."
- Brandon Doody
About 3/4th of my class went home early."
- Brandon Doody
10. "I was a middle schooler in Baltimore. All the parents lined up outside of the school to pick up the kids early that day. Nobody knew what the hell was happening, but we knew something had happened. None of the teachers showed us any footage or news during school. My name was eventually called to go to the office for early dismissal and when I headed there, I turned a corner and saw a line of parents in the lobby. The line was so long that it reached out the front doors!
Some parents were crying and some were yelling. When we got in the car, I immediately asked my mom what was happening. She only told me, 'There's been an attack and there could possibly be more.'
We were located very close to D.C. so everyone was terrified. Parents thought a school could very possibly be another target, everyone was hyper vigilant."
- L. K.
Some parents were crying and some were yelling. When we got in the car, I immediately asked my mom what was happening. She only told me, 'There's been an attack and there could possibly be more.'
We were located very close to D.C. so everyone was terrified. Parents thought a school could very possibly be another target, everyone was hyper vigilant."
- L. K.
11. "I was in my junior year at St. Mary’s College of Maryland. My roommates girlfriend called and woke me up after the first plane hit. By the time I understood what she was saying and I got the TV turned on, the second plane hit. I watched the coverage until it was time to go to my 10 am biology class and felt the need to go to class to maintain a sense of normalcy.
By the hour break, I left the class wanting to get back to watching the news. After I left, the school announced that classes were canceled. I spent the rest of the day watching the news with my housemate and friends, including one whose father was in the Pentagon and who she couldn’t reach because of the communications bottleneck."
- Tom Sherman
By the hour break, I left the class wanting to get back to watching the news. After I left, the school announced that classes were canceled. I spent the rest of the day watching the news with my housemate and friends, including one whose father was in the Pentagon and who she couldn’t reach because of the communications bottleneck."
- Tom Sherman
12. "The weekend before 9/11, I was on Long Island for my cousin’s wedding. I was 12 years old and had dreamed of living in New York City for my whole life. Unfortunately, I only ever got to see it from the Brooklyn Queens Expressway on the way to Riverhead to visit my grandmother on holidays. I begged my parents to just drive us through the city and let me stop and see it. This particular time, I desperately wanted them to take me to the Twin Towers so I could look out from the top and see the whole city. My mom told me no, it’s late on a Sunday and I had school in the morning and next time we’d stop, and the observatory would be there for me to see another day.
On the morning of 9/11, I was in my 7th grade math class when we first got an idea that something was going on. My teacher was from Brooklyn and had a heavy NY accent, so someone thought it was important to tell her first. She disappeared and we didn’t know why, but figured it was personal. As the day went on, more and more people were being called to the office and they weren’t coming back. There were no explanations given, but at some point they moved everyone to the cafeteria and just let us sit and wonder if we’d get called to the office next.
My mom came to get me and she was shaken. She tried to explain what was going on, but I had no idea who 'Ben Laden' was. My dad worked at the local military post and she wasn’t able to get in contact with him, and we figured the post was locked down and could be a target. Once we got home and I saw the TV, I was horrified. But in my 12 year old brain, the first thought I had was.
'She said I would be there next time...'
I don’t remember when my dad finally came home that night, and I don’t remember how long it took us to contact our family in New York, but I know the phones weren’t going through for a long time. We were lucky, my cousin was on her honeymoon instead of working in one of the towers. My great uncle decided not to fly home to California and went to Saratoga instead. My dad wasn’t at the Pentagon that day. Everyone I knew was safe by pure luck."
- Kate Conneally
On the morning of 9/11, I was in my 7th grade math class when we first got an idea that something was going on. My teacher was from Brooklyn and had a heavy NY accent, so someone thought it was important to tell her first. She disappeared and we didn’t know why, but figured it was personal. As the day went on, more and more people were being called to the office and they weren’t coming back. There were no explanations given, but at some point they moved everyone to the cafeteria and just let us sit and wonder if we’d get called to the office next.
My mom came to get me and she was shaken. She tried to explain what was going on, but I had no idea who 'Ben Laden' was. My dad worked at the local military post and she wasn’t able to get in contact with him, and we figured the post was locked down and could be a target. Once we got home and I saw the TV, I was horrified. But in my 12 year old brain, the first thought I had was.
'She said I would be there next time...'
I don’t remember when my dad finally came home that night, and I don’t remember how long it took us to contact our family in New York, but I know the phones weren’t going through for a long time. We were lucky, my cousin was on her honeymoon instead of working in one of the towers. My great uncle decided not to fly home to California and went to Saratoga instead. My dad wasn’t at the Pentagon that day. Everyone I knew was safe by pure luck."
- Kate Conneally