I attended a 9/11 service yesterday morning at my rifle and pistol club. Our club lost 2 of its members on 9/11 so it was a personal requirement that I attend there. The service itself was rather somber as it should be. It was without a doubt a tearful one for the two families. One of the now over 30 sons of the departed said that he didn’t think his father would want to be remembered with tears but as the man who enjoyed life and laughed at every moment that was worth laughing at. He thought his father would say “they won!” if he was always remembered with tears. His father would have just said “Remember and don’t let it happen again!”
But the tears come because it is hard for wife not to cry when she remembers her lost husband. A daughter who lost the Dad that was to walk her down the aisle. The son who won’t get to go to the range again with his Dad, mentor, and teacher. Hopefully all of them had enough time to form good lasting memories that will console them through the years until they are together again.
Where were you on 9/11?
I know where I was but unfortunately others did not. I was signed out, according to the office, to NYC USSS Office for an ECTF Seminar but my assignment was changed to Rochester by an after hours phone call. Never called the AA and said “Hey I am going to…” because, well, it was not all that important at the time. That slip caused some tearful moments for my wife, my coworkers, my manager, and his bosses. They were all frantically looking for me and I was blissfully ignoring my pager because I was with a principal that I was to take care of for the day. The principal finally told me to answer the damn pager. The first words I heard were “are you OK?” I said “sure, why?” I was told in no uncertain terms to get my principal on his way to California any way I could and then to get back home myself. Anyway I could? “Whats going on?” Roy, my manager, said find a TV but don’t screw around wasting time. When I caught a glimpse of what they were looking at my heart went cold.
Getting someone to California on 9/11 was interesting. No air travel. Thank God for trains. I made it home the next day to a very tearful and somewhat angry wife. That is a story in itself and for another time. I’ll just say have cash at times like 9/11
We are all independent, go where we will, type people. But it never hurts to let a loved know where you are going and when you’ll be coming home. Remember the first lines of the ARES Field Guide – take care of your family first. Telling them where you are going is part of that.
If you are doing an ARES mission then be sure that someone knows where you have been sent, who sent you, how long you’ll be there, that you got there, and when you start back they know you are on the way. You may think you are the big rough tough communicator but in reality we are all just soft bags of fragile flesh that other people care about.
Never go any where without someone knowing what your plans are. Even if it is just a trip down the turnpike to visit Montgomery County ARES. If things change let someone know. It is courtesy and kindness. It may save someone some worry. Its a connection that is not a leash but it may be a lifeline for you or some one else.
“Never Forget!”
73,
WT Jones
WN3LIF
ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Service
wn3lif@w3luz.org <—
Eastern PA District 3 District Emergency Coordinator
Eastern PA District 2 Acting District Emergency Coordinator
Eastern PA Section Emergency Coordinator
http://www.w3luz.org