As we approach the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of 2001, the Business Journal asked members of the local business and civic communities to share their thoughts and experiences from that day and the intervening years. Some of those recollections are printed here, with others to follow in the Sept. 5 print and online editions.
To us, the decade has passed swiftly. Perhaps not so for those who lost family, friends and colleagues on that new day of infamy. The horrific images of that day are seared into our psyches, a paranoid branding that triggered immediate fears of terrorism last week when an earthquake in Virginia sent shockwaves across the Northeast.
Reading through the recollections, we felt saddened but inspired.
“My brother, Adam Lewis, was killed during the 9/11 attacks,” wrote Kathy Hebert, director of the Norwalk Parking Authority. “Yes the aftermath of 9/11 has brought with it conflict and sometimes division, but when you look at the many acts of kindness and support that came to us as a family ”“ and to all the families affected by 9/11 ”“ you realize that the good in all of us is greater than the evil of the few.”
One CEO recounted feelings of patriotism.
“I was very proud to be an American as I watched our great people pull together immediately after 9/11,” wrote Jay Forgotson, chief executive of BNC Financial Group Inc.
“We overcame the enemy, did everything possible for the families and friends of the victims, and businesses worked together, often helping out their competitors, so that all could thrive. No other people in the world could have addressed the critical issues the way we did.”
Mr. Forgotson then turned our attention toward the recent troubles in Washington. “The last several weeks and months provided a stark example of how pettiness and politics can thwart the will and best interests of the American people.
“On 9/11 let”™s ask our Congress and president to address the issues which need immediate resolution including the deficit, the debt ceiling, unemployment and tax reform. It is time to reset the standard of leadership for the democratic world, if for no other reason than to honor those who gave their lives for our American principles.”
We concur. What a fitting tribute to the fallen.
