Remembering 9/11/01

I was getting ready to head to Sierra Vista, Az. for a meeting with colleagues as part of our Building Social Capital Project.  This project, coordinated by the Arizona Community Foundation and funded by The Ford Foundation, was designed to "connect the dots" between non-profits, government and other community elements in border towns in Cochise, Pima and Yuma counties.  We had already been working on this project for a year when 9/11 came around on the calendar. 

As I watched the real time t.v. coverage of the attacks on the towers, the Pentagon and, later, the plane crash in the Pennsylvania farm field, all I could think of was how important it had to be for us to continue to act "as if" this would, somehow, not cripple our country.  By the time I got to Sierra Vista, Ft. Huachuca had started to shut down access to their base and traffic was tightening all around the city.  But we all showed up, probably driven by the same sense of civic duty as I was feeling.

News was still unraveling about the attacks, but we knew we had to have moments of silence, share whatever was welling up in our hearts and minds, hold hands and yes, continue to do our civic duty.  So, on the 11th Anniversary I fondly think of all us in that circle and reach out to you and to others.

On a mini-vacation last year, Mark and I discovered that at Pepperdine University, they set a flag on the hills of Malibur for each of the fallen that day. Their flags also identify the nationality of each of the fallen.  I have learned that Tempe, Az. also has done something similar to honor 9/11 on their "Healing Field" memorial.  So--to recall those hours, days, and months after 9/11, here is a photo from Pepperdine U., taken by Mark.  He also has photos of the 9/11 Memorial in NYC that we visited in March.  Those will be posted later today.