23 years ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday

I was deployed to Camp Monteith, Kosovo in the town of Gnjilane. Kosovo is 6 hours ahead of NYC, so it was early-afternoon. I was the night shift NCO for my company. A couple of my Soldiers and I went to the movie theater on the camp to watch The Fast and the Furious, but it turned out that they changed the matinee movie that day to Bridget Jones' Diary. Since we had already paid for the movie, we stayed to watch it.(To this day, I can't watch that stupid movie, without thinking about the 9/11 attacks). About 25 minutes into the movie, I heard my CO's voice come over the hand-held radio that I had to carry saying "All TOC personnel report to the TOC immediately." (tactical operations center, for those of you unfamiliar with Army Acronyms). I turned to my Soldier who was sitting next to me and told him to grab his weapon because we had to go to the TOC right away. As I picked up my M4 and stood up, I noticed that just about everyone else in the movie theatre was leaving also.

We jogged to our company TOC. When we got there, we asked what was going on, and our CO told us that "America has been attacked. Hijackers have crashed planes into both of the World Trade Center Towers in New York and also another one into the Pentagon." They had the TV on in the TOC and the second tower collapsed right after I got to the TOC. I spent the rest of the time before my shift and my entire shift glued to the TV. They put a communication blackout into effect on Camp Monteith----nothing but official traffic on radios, phones, or internet. Things really changed after the attacks. Before the attacks happened, we only wore our protective gear when we went outside the perimeter of our camp. We carried our weapons without a magazine in while we were inside the wire and then put the magazine in the magazine well when we went outside the wire but we did not chamber a round. After the attacks, for the remaining 3 months we were in Kosovo, we wore our protective gear at all times, except for sleeping and showering. We carried our weapons with a magazine in the magazine well while inside the wire. We chambered a round as soon as we went outside the wire. I didn't know it at the time, but that set the tone for how I would spend the next 9 years


I will never forget what happened the following night after the attacks happened. The people of Gnjlane, Kosovo had a candlelight prayer vigil in remembrance of all the victims. Serbs, Croats. and Albanians, Christians and Muslims all putting aside their personal differences and expressing their sympathy for the victims and disgust for the attacks. That was truly a memorable sight to behold

Dorm room junior year getting ready for class. I was an RA and got a call about an emergency meeting. Spent the next few days sitting with my residents who had family and friends associated with the towers. Ultimately had to drop a class (and the minor I was attempting) so to all the time I spent just being there for my residents.

Just back to 4th stoop Dorm 11 after FTAB drill that morning. About to run some errands before a 10 am class, when someone yelled get to a room with a TV, it didn't matter how we were dressed (it's a whole thing on the Corps about how you're dressed based on your class etc….). Got a to a room and could barely hear what was going on as I was in the hallway due to the crowd. Heard something about a plane and the WTC. I pictured a Cessna and thought "man what an idiot". Ran my errand and when I got back on the car to come back to campus the radio was talking about another plane hitting the WTC and the pentagon being hit. Knew then that it was an attack. The quad went to quiet conditions that day. I still remember the bugler playing the Star Spangled Banner that night at evening formation. It was played perfectly and sounded beautiful.

I had M-W-F classes that semester at OkState and worked Tuesday and Thursdays. . Was driving to work that Tuesday morning and heard a plane flew into one of the World Trade Center towers on the radio in my pickup. No TV at work, no smartphones, just listened to the events unfold on the radio all day.

On my way out to class...History Class with the Legendary Dr. Kramer of all people at A&M. The ride to campus on the Bonfire Route was eerie. Dead silent, just listening to the radio station talk about what was actively happening.

When we got to lecture hall, Dr. Kramer told everyone "go home, call your family, this is History we will read about some other day. Go home."

Class was canceled and we all went home.

Something that stands out about that event was the Red, White, and Blue game the following week. During a moment of silence at the game, I specifically recall a random fan yell out "Beat the He'll outta Bin Laden!" And Kyle Field erupting in a massive "Whooooop!". That will always be one of the most memorable things I've witnessed at Kyle Field. Perfectly timed!

Get ready for work with the TV on in the bathroom. That was when the first plane flew into the first tower and they still weren't sure if it was a small plane or not. Then saw the 2nd plane hit and knew we were under attack.

Piloting a 737 (USAirways) from La Guardia to Buffalo. Left La Guardia 37 min before the first strike. Diverted to Rochester.

Radio alarm was set to WTAW.

Expected to wake up to whatever morning show they were doing at that time, but instead they had cut to a national news feed from the network flagship station in New York.

The situation was unclear as they were talking about a Cessna or some other type of small plane crashing into the WTC. Didn't think it was that big a deal at the time.

Turned on the tv just in time to watch the second plane hit on live tv.

Had a quiz that day in a class needed to graduate.

So went ahead and did what you would expect. What any sane person would do. I went up to the 5th floor of Evans library and prepared for that quiz. Just because the country under attack you can't expect no slack.

Had a Nokia brick phone at the time. There was sketchy reception inside Evans library so I go down stairs to that brick area out front.

About the time I got out the door the voicemail icon on the Nokia brick phone dings.

Listened to the voicemail and just like that my days as a student at A&M was over.

Remember watching the news later that day while packing my stuff and they had somehow already fingered bin Laden and had his photo up on the screen.

Left BCS later that day never to return as a student.

Upside was I didn't have to worry about that quiz or what I was gonna do after graduation.

Wild times.

schuhmacher dorm, watching morning sportscenter with my roommate

I first heard a professor (P.J. Miller) reference "everything that is going on" in the computer lab in Read (under Kyle Field) because no one could access the internet, email, computer network, etc., but she didnt specify what it was. I headed to my next class upstairs in G. Rollie. Our professor came in and told us about the planes hitting the Twin Towers, but information was sketchy at that point. We all spent a little while processing and were able to leave whenever we needed to.

I worked at a local daycare and went straight there from campus. The owner had brought in a small TV so we could keep up. It was surreal how the children (all under 3) reacted. We obviously were not openly talking about it in front of them, but they could sense the stress and emotion in the rooms. Their moods mellowed and so did their energy levels.

There are few moments in my life where I can still feel the same emotions so many years later.

Soph in high school. English class.

Another teacher knocked on the door and talked to our teacher in the hallway for a minute. Then she walked to the front of the class and said "we are under attack in New York and Washington" and turned on the TV in the classroom.

The next period was world history. Our teacher was a complete selfish moron who told us that we could watch news coverage later and her lecture was more important. No one paid attention. She briefly turned on the TV at the end of class to watch the stock ticker at the bottom of the screen to make sure her defense stocks weren't going down, and she literally jumped up and down and said "yes!" when it scrolled to the one she was looking for. Absolute insanity.

The rest of the day we did nothing but watch news coverage.

I was at work, I had the radio on and heard a plane had hit the World Trade Center. My coworkers and I were stunned. I'll never forget where I was on 9/11.

I was awake and going thru my normal morning routine at the time (SS&S before work, a little SportsCenter before heading out……..the good days, back before ESiPN was a steaming pile of woke BS). Had no idea anything had happened before arriving at the office. A few coworkers were crowded around this tiny little black & white Sony Watchman…….and here comes Dixichkn, blissfully unaware………"hey y'all, what's going on?"

They turned around and looked at me like I was insane.

Breakfast with room mate in Commons. Walking through Commons lobby there was a huge crowd in the TV lounge but we shrugged it off and went to eat. Got to my first class (ENGR 111) and the classroom had one computer for every 4 students. Everyone was clustered around each of the computers trying to get any news site to load but it was nearly impossible. When someone finally got an update they'd yell it out. Prof came in about 30 min late and told us no class and left quickly. Spent the rest of the day glued to my tv in Aston.

I was walking out of my senior seminar with Dr. Brand and my girlfriend got a call about planes flying into the Trade Towers. I laughed and said someone has been reading too much Tom Clancy. I saw how serious it was when I got to the computer lab and saw the videos.

On the 31st floor of a very tall building.

In Houston.

We walked down the stairs and went home a short time later.

HS Jr Pre-Cal class.

For whatever reason, my teachers/principal had started letting me get away with different rules than everybody else, so I spent most of the week in a tiny room in the back of the library which had the only TV on campus that was connected to cable instead of going to class.

I was at the stop light at George Bush and Wellborn, ready to turn left on to Wellborn, and a person on the radio said that a plane had just hit the World Trade Center.

At work in downtown houston. Coworker came by and said a plane hit a tower. We thought it was a small plane
No details. We went downstairs to cafeteria with big screen on the news and watched 2nd plane hit. Stayed there until 1st tower collapsed.

Went back to office and tried to get updates online but slow. Boss announced everyone go home. Traffic to galleria area where I lived was like rush hour.

Still get anxious seeing the flights coming in low near downtown on their way to Hobby.

Driving to Inks Lake to Set up GPS equipment on top of the Dam to do dome Land Surveying. Listening to KLBJ FM and heard the DJ say "Holy ****! A plane hit the tower!" We went on our way and were setting up our equipment and the phone at the dam rang. We answered and they told us to get off the Dam. LCRA police officers were coming to help get us off the dam. A suburban with 4 heavily armed officers helped us off the dam, locked the gates. Drove back to Austin and the Austin American Statesman newspaper workers were handing out newspapers with the images. First images we had see. Scary day.

Getting ready for class, my roommate called me the the living room and said a plane hit the WTC. I then listened to the coverage on the radio as I went to class at Heep.

Sitting on an old green couch on Antelope Ln. Had turned on TV to catch sportscenter before going to class. Saw that a plane had hit WTC. Then watched the 2nd plane hit. Saw reports of plane hitting the Pentagon.

A good friend from high school graduated from UT and worked for Bush at the Whitehouse. I frantically called her to see if she was ok, but couldn't get her on the phone. I called her parents and they told me she was OK. She had been in a meeting at the Pentagon right before the plane hit there.

I finally heard from her later in the day, and she told me how they evacuated them. Someone came into the room, and told them to leave immediately. Don't worry about your purses, phones, etc just get out now. She lived inside the perimeter set up around the Whitehouse and couldn't leave. We figured, at that point, it was probably the safest place in America to be.

I didn't even know she had been in a meeting at tge Pentagon until after the fact, but I was still worried sick until I spoke with her parents. I can't imagine how awful it had to have been for the families of people who worked in the WTC.

6th grade math class. Teachers gathered multiple rooms together and turned on the tube TV.

Late to school senior year.

I was at work We has a small tv in the break room. Everyone was gathered there. When the first building fell, we couldnt believe it. Not sure what we were seeing

30th floor of Marathon Oil Tower in Houston. Someone said come look at this by the tv in the coffee room. They told us to go home within the hour. Called the wife and told her what was going on and she asked me if she should go get the kids from preschool. My answer, I don't think they will attack the Rosehill, TX Methodist Church

HS Band class. Mornings were for private lessons and section practice. Mr. Hillen had played professionally and had friends in NY. When he heard the news of the first tower we stopped to look at the news on his computer. They wheeled out the big TVs and we watched. He spent the rest of class trying to call his friends in NY to check on them. The rest of the day the wall mounted TVs all across campus had the news on all day. Even my liberal friends were looking for the US to level whoever did it.

Walked into Spanish class freshman year and heard a plane had hit the World Trade Center. Didn't even know where that was located.

Patching a trap fence on a ranch just north of Bryan. Turned on the radio expecting to hear Louie Belina then spent the next 5 minutes or so trying to make sense of what I was hearing.

I was 11. My dad was stationed outside of DC doing training for the USDA and we visited him the week earlier. My mom was driving me to middle school and I see the exact road we were on when my grandmother called us about the first tower being hit. A few minutes later I was in the library and saw the second plane hit

I was going running. Before i parked , listening to Paul Harvey and he said a plane had hit one of the towers. I thought it was an accident, probably some small plane.

Later, as my buddy and I jogged by a parked motorcycle cop, the officer told us a second plane had hit the other tower. Knew then that it was a terror attack

Sitting in my recliner in Austin. Was between radio gigs. So, my usual day was, "what course am I going to play?".

Saw it happen live as I was watching GMA or something. Realized quicker than the media that this wasn't an accident. 2nd plane hit for confirmation.

My dad was on his way to the President's ranch in Crawford. He had been doing some consulting with them regarding the plant life on the place. It was his second visit. On the first, he had ridden around the ranch in a truck with the President driving, he was shotgun, First lady and condoleezza rice were back seat. SS in the bed. President made a joke asking my dad about using an insect they were talking about for stem cell research.....

That was the big deal then.

I called him on his cell phone to let him know what was going on. Not certain he could understand the magnitude of the situation. I told him that the chances were real good he would not be granted access to the ranch.

Shockingly, he was.

He spent some time there before secret service came out and told him he had to leave.

They were bringing the daughter from Austin there for safekeeping.

Since that point in time, I had the opportunity to work with responders who went to ground zero. I've also had the opportunity to share significant conversation with Andrew Card.

That day and those interactions will be forever burned in my memory. The fact that each anniversary seems less significant in the minds of many seriously disturbs me..

//Was enroute to my job at 8th Air Force Combat Plans on Barksdale AFB, LA. Truely remarkable day for me because I got to meet President George W Bush, after his initial briefing, on his short visit outside of MGen Tom Keck's office (8th AF/CC). He was gracious/ encouraging us to prepare for deployments ahead and thanking all for service. We watched as security police put W in a armored vehicle and returned him AF 1 for flight to Offutt AFB,NE. Three weeks later, our entire squadron was mobilized/deployed to standup the first Air Operatins Center (AOC) at CONR/1st AF Tyndall AFB,Fl for Norad. Worked this deployment for better part of year until pushed forward to another AOC at PSAB, Saudi to support Enduring Freedom. Tough on our family with adolesant teenage boys, prolong deployments and wife recovering from breast cancer. Looking back is surreal, but God/family/friends got us and our country through this period and I believe he still has a plan for me.//Count me as blessed//Herknav sends