How A Small Town Built A Lasting 9/11 Memorial

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Every day they answer the call.
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They see what most people will never see.
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They carry moments most people will never understand.
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But when the call ends, who is there for them?
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What's your emergency?
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Here on September 11th, broadcasting from the 9-11 Memorial here in Tellytown, Pennsylvania.
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What a solemn and somber place this is.
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Here with two of my really good friends, David Pearl and Amy Austin, Lifetime First Responders.
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And this is a special show dedicated to those at 9-11 First Responders and really what 9-11 means to the both of you.
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So thank you for joining us.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Yeah, that's great.
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Amy, let's let's start with you.
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We always have our guests do a little bit of background on themselves, their their career, their background, how they started in how they started in emergency services and first responders and a little bit about a little bit about who you are.
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Yeah, so thanks for having me here today.
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And I uh started by uh chasing the footsteps of my dad.
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So growing up, my dad was in the fire department, and I would always remember him, you know, getting that call at the worst times, you know, in the middle of dinner, in the middle of a birthday party, in the middle of daddy let's go shopping.
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So then I guess I got smart and was like, all right, I'm gonna rock out with him and see where he's going.
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So I actually once was going through the fire academy at a very young age of 14.
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So I did go through it here at Tellytown.
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And I remember being not only the only girl, but the young girl of the group.
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So I was the little sister of everyone, and but showed up every day and showed them that I could do it too.
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Yeah.
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And I had that under my belt for a little while.
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And then the medical side of things just kind of took over.
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And I got my EMT, and I knew from a very young age that nursing was the avenue that I was gonna go into.
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So I worked on the rescue squad locally here as a volunteer, Lovitown Fairless Hills, and worked with some of the best of the best to get that core background.
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Went to nursing school on a full scholarship, I might add.
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Um yeah.
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And I graduated and went right into the intensive care unit as a new grad nurse at St.
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Mary's.
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And then I dabbled a little bit about, you know, in the trauma world.
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And then I was like, uh, I don't know.
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So then I went to school nursing, and then I always came back to that emergency side of things, worked through the emergency department, and currently hold the role of regional director for nursing, so of the education department.
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So that's where I'm at right now.
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That's quite a career.
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Yeah.
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I mean, all off of all off of the motivation or the the motivation coming from from your dad as a as a first responder as well.
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Well, that's that's absolutely incredible.
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What a what an incredible just a short, you know, a career that uh in in a short amount of time.
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Right.
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Dave, Dave and I, so uh full disclosure, Dave and I have been friends.
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He's a combat veteran.
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He and I were in the uh veterans of foreign wars together, and I first met Dave when I was when I was in the Veterans of Foreign Wars several years back.
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So Dave, welcome to the show.
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Thank you.
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It's great to see you again.
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It's it's been a while since we connected, but really, really happy that we did introduce yourself.
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And uh, you know, truth be told, when I went through the Fire Academy, Dave uh showed up.
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Dave showed up and was the keynote speaker and gave the keynote.
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My dad as the speaker?
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I don't believe it.
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Right.
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It was a community college graduation and I had the president of the Chief Association.
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And he brought props.
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He brought a lot of props with him.
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The blue light and t-shirts, and it was great.
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Yeah, it was it was great.
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Dave, go ahead and introduce yourself and give us a little background.
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You already gave away some of my secrets.
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But anyway, so a few things right ahead of time is I I I served 41 years in the United States Air Force.
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I also have now closed in on my 34th year as Tuletown Firefighter, EMT.
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Which so I I get to see both aspects of what happened here.
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I also am a father of three, grandfather of three and a half, because I'm expecting the fourth one on the way.
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Congratulations.
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Um and, you know, married on my second wife almost 30 years now.
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It will absolutely be my last.
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She promised me that.
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That's right.
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One way or the other, right?
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Whether it's a big thing.
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She did promise me that.
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Whether she puts you in the boneyard or the Lord calls you hope.
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So trying to follow on the track of what Amy had, uh I was in when I was in high school, I knew I was going in the military.
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I actually enlisted before I even graduated.
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They wouldn't let me leave until my 18th birthday, but I had already signed up and everything, we were good to go.
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So that was back in 1983.
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Then, so my career was pressing on.
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At first, I was a munition system specialist and I specialized in air-to-air missiles.
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And then I became an aircraft mechanic when we lost our type of aircraft.
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Most of my duty I did over at Maguire Air Force Base in New Jersey.
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And I did experience later on, and this is how me and John became friends through the VFW because I did did get deployed after 9-11.
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The other facts are that I was chief here at Toe Town Fire Company from 2001 to 2008, and if you know, that was roughly about nine months after I was made chief, is when I sat and watched what happened.
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And I got deployed in my first term as chief.
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So that's my connection with 9-11.
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That's what brings you here today.
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I'm sure later on we're going to talk more about the memorial, but I I think that catches you up pretty much on most of it.
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Yeah, and I and I really appreciate that.
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And I really appreciate I wanted to say, you know, it's as a lot of people say, thank you for your service, but thank you for a lifetime, really, the both of you in emergency services.
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It's and and of course for your military service as well.
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But you mentioned the memorial.
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This this memorial is actually beautiful, and I wish we I wish we had the the video podcast going because it's actually it's right behind it's right behind this beautiful fire station, and it's it's just it just it's really well done, Dave.
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Tell us a little bit about now I know that you have you were directly responsible for the establishment of this of this.
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Tell a little bit about how you got started, what the motivation, well motivation, but the the memorization or the memorialization of people who of course perished on on 9-11.
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So it it it starts out.
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I might get a little lengthliness because I tend to get upset.
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But and here we go.
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It started off when I got out.
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Because a lot of people that are served in the military for a long period of time, they take their uniform off, they put it in a closet, they put it in a chest, they put it away somewhere.
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And I was always brought up that when that uniform comes off, you put another one on.
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You also have to pick up a different mission because you're not doing what you did.
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This was my mission.
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And as you know, it's kind of obsessed me.
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I think it's a good therapy for you.
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Yeah, great.
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It started here in Tullytown.
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We started an honor guard, believe it or not, we started an honor guard in 2000, before we had the need for what we thought we were going to eventually fall into.
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But we started an honor guard here with a few of my other friends that were prior military service also.
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And when I got deployed is when, or I got deployed, is when like my deputy chief had to take over here, because I was still chief of the department for another seven years after that.
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And the the connection was really strong.
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You always we often talk about the brotherhood between the military and the fire between the fire department, EMS, whatever, law enforcement.
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It is there, for sure.
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But those of us that have experienced both, it's still not the same.
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There there's a difference between being the chance of being shot at and killed, and there's a difference between the chance of walking into a burning building and and dying a line of duty.
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To us that have experienced it.
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Sure.
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Some some might to those who may not be either, they may see those as equal as equal terms of risk or equal chances of risk.
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It's just it feels d the brotherhood feels different when you get to that point.
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So okay, so let me back up.
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So I I did that, and then I officially came off of active duty in 2004.
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Three years post-9-11, and we had already started our ceremonies here.
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We started our ceremonies in 2002 on the every year on the anniversary, and they used to be right over there in the park at a pavilion.
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We never had that piece of steel behind you.
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Which again, you we don't have the video, so what happened was I got redeployed down to Florida in 2009.
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In 2010, my deputy chief, when I had left, which his name is Rick Johnson, Chief Johnson was the one that actually obtained this piece of metal behind you.
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It was kept in our firehouse on wheels, and every year for a 9-11 ceremony, we would roll it out.
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We would roll it over to the park.
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We had the ceremony, and it was put away.
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That bothered me.
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And I had always said, one of these days it's going to be in a place of honor.
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And that's that's what started this.
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That took probably another five to six years for me to get this going.
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This this was my vision, my driving force.
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I was a pain in a lot of people's butts to get this done.
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Yeah.
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And they made me pay for it because I have personally built this monument twice by my with me and another gentleman.
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That's a story for another day, but the first time we built it, we completed it the night of September 10th, and it really might have looked like this, but nothing was glued together, nothing was put together.
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There was no power to it, none of that.
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September 12th or September 12th of that year.
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We had to take it all down, clear everything off, and start over again.
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Wow.
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A lot of people don't know that.
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The dedicated memorial service was done when it wasn't really put together.
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But it doesn't matter.
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It's it's together now.
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The highlight of our monument is that beam behind it.
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To us, that's sacred.
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Yeah.
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They asked me about painting it.
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I said, absolutely not.
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You will not ever paint that.
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That needs to be the way it came down.
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The only addition that we did to that was because we wanted to include all three aspects of 9-11.
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The base, as you can see, is in the shape of the Pentagon.
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Yeah.
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The beam itself is for New York City.
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And up there, what you're looking at, John, is the flag with an airplane on it, and that's for Shanksville.
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Ah, okay.
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So we covered all the things that are titled all together.
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The only thing that I would let them do was put that on there for Shanksville because we had no other way of doing it.
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We wanted it to be part of it.
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And the last thing we did for that monument is we did exactly the same thing as they do in New York.
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And every, actually, every I don't know if you know this, but all three of the monuments that are in Shanksville at the Pentagon and New York all have moving water.
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No, I didn't I I did that.
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That piece of brick that's sitting in front of it, the green one, that is a piece of the Pentagon.
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Okay.
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The only thing I don't have is a piece from Shanksville because the FAA took custody of all that.
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Of all that.
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So for our listeners, what uh what I'm looking at here is a piece of the a piece of the iron, a piece of the metal from ground zero from 9-11.
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It's actually from the South Tower.
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South Tower.
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Um which you'll connect the dots on that South Tower later, Tower 2.
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It's from the South Tower, and Amy will be telling you something later about the South Tower because of the connection here in Bucks County.
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Gotcha.
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Well, actually, let's go.
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Amy I talked way more than I was.
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No, that's that's that's absolutely that's absolutely fine.
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We love, you know, these, especially these these special episodes.
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We we really like when the guests elaborate.
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Amy, tell us about the the connection to Bucks County and the South Tower.
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Yeah, so I was lucky enough to be friends with a amazing family, but more so my my girlfriend, her name is Kirsten.
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Kirsten, she connects to Bucks County and 9-11 because she still lives the history of 9-11.
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Her father, Victor Saracini, was the pilot of the second plane.
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And we actually found out about the events very different, obviously, different stories for both of us.
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But weirdly at the same time, we were sitting in music class, Penwood Middle School, Mrs.
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Sharkey, sitting right next to each other.
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And you know, back then it was definitely not as developed with technology in the schools as it is right now.
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But you you knew something was going on.
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You didn't know what was going on, but you knew something was going on.
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Teachers were kind of in and out of the classrooms.
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There was whispering, there was announcements coming over the loudspeaker.
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And you know, like middle school girls do whenever there's an opportunity to talk, we were we were using that opportunity.
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Right, right.
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And I just remember yeah, and I just remember sitting there and we were chit-chatting, and then I looked down the hallway and I was like, huh, that that looks like Kirsten's mom.
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What what is she doing here?
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And then I I I remember looking again after like telling Kirsten, like, yo, your mom's here.
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You're in trouble.
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Um, I didn't know what was going on.
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I looked back and I was like, oh God, that's my mom.
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Why is she here?
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What did we do?
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No, we were good kids.
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And it was at that that moment that we we didn't know that our whole our whole world was about to change.
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Yeah.
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And over that next five minutes, I think that everything came crumbling down for Kirsten at the same time that I was being left with so much uncertainty, being told you gotta go and say bye to daddy.
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And you know, waking up that morning, that was not on the agenda.
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No.
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And, you know, that that is how I connect to this day.
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History means something so different when you live it.
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It it doesn't just go into the past, you know, you you live that every day.
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And Kirsten doesn't get to put 9-11 in her pocket.
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This is every day for her.
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So while she does not come to tell her story to the public, it's my way that I can, you know, I've had permission from her.
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I'm gonna share our story because our story, while so very different, it started at the same time in that same classroom when we least expected it, you know, so similarly to everyone else in this nation on that day.
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Yeah, that's that's fascinating, especially to be sitting right next to somebody who's was personally affected by this event.
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What was going through your mind?
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At the time when we were in the classroom, yeah, when we saw our moms walking towards us, honestly, you know, it it it was, yeah, probably fear, but not for the reason that we thought it or that we were going to learn that it was from, you know, it was a lot of confusion, which again, I'm sure we weren't alone in that confusion at that moment, you know.
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I find it a a reason to to ask, not just around this time of the year, but often, where were you?
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What were you doing?
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Right, you know, because it it's it's again, it's something that I don't want to be a part of just the the history books that well, unfortunately it's not in the history books for the most part, but I don't I don't want it to just be that once a time once a year conversation, you know.
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Yeah, but I I think at that moment I I had a lot of questions.
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We we knew the situation to what it was being presented to us, we knew there were still a lot of questions with answers that weren't there, and that came down even to my dad.
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You know, it wasn't the first deployment that I had gone through with him, but this one felt different.
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This one had a lot of uncertainties.
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And when I tell you I'm a daddy's girl, I'm a daddy's girl.
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You know, when my parents separated, my dog tagged her on her foot.
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Yeah, we can talk about that because that does also connect back to this is that tattoo.
00:19:34.319 --> 00:19:40.079
But you know, when my parents separated, I I didn't make it long living with my mom.
00:19:40.240 --> 00:19:43.119
Not I just I needed to be with my dad.
00:19:43.200 --> 00:19:45.599
That was always that was me, you know.
00:19:45.839 --> 00:19:58.559
And when you came home and you're being told by the person who you feel the safest with when the world around you is the scariest that they're leaving.
00:19:58.799 --> 00:19:59.440
Yeah.
00:20:00.000 --> 00:20:01.359
Well, that could be unnerving.
00:20:01.759 --> 00:20:05.759
Yeah, I I wasn't, I didn't care about what was happening in the world.
00:20:05.839 --> 00:20:07.279
I wanted him there, you know.
00:20:07.440 --> 00:20:15.680
I wanted, I didn't want to have to have that sacrifice, just like I know Kirsten didn't ask for her story to be played out like that, you know.
00:20:15.920 --> 00:20:28.000
So I think confusion was there, but I think anger was the feeling that I feel the most, not because of what was happening around me, but selfishly at that point in time, I didn't want to let him go.
00:20:28.160 --> 00:20:31.519
I didn't, I didn't have the answers that were gonna make me feel better.
00:20:31.759 --> 00:20:36.799
And those answers really didn't come for a very long time, you know, after that situation.
00:20:37.039 --> 00:20:37.279
Yeah.
00:20:37.759 --> 00:20:40.720
That's a and and I I I can you know I can't imagine, right?
00:20:40.799 --> 00:20:59.359
I mean, I was deployed to and as far as deployed to as as far as Operation, you know, Desert Storm and the in the Gulf War, but and and you know just the just the just the you know emergency type of nature of the deployment and then having to get your affairs ready to go.
00:20:59.599 --> 00:21:15.119
Dave, talk about talk about 9-11 and and where you were and because I'm sure everybody, like you mentioned, Amy, knows exactly where they were, but what uh go starting with uh 9-11, just what you had just asked.
00:21:15.440 --> 00:21:18.960
I actually was over at the base exchange.
00:21:19.759 --> 00:21:26.079
And I happened to be in, and I guess everything happens for reason, but I happened to be in the section where the TVs were on.
00:21:26.720 --> 00:21:32.880
And I saw the first reports of a plane into the the first tower.
00:21:33.599 --> 00:21:40.799
And immediately, since nobody was prepared for this on this on the news, it was 8 30 in the morning.
00:21:40.880 --> 00:21:42.319
I mean Yeah, yeah, it was early.
00:21:42.640 --> 00:21:43.920
There was still morning news on.
00:21:44.160 --> 00:21:44.400
Sure.
00:21:44.640 --> 00:21:50.960
And that's when they, you know, in their ear they got this news, and I'm like, oh, it must have been like a little civilian plane or something, you know.
00:21:51.519 --> 00:21:54.319
Talk about New York City around the yeah, something like that.
00:21:54.400 --> 00:21:55.839
That's what I thought.
00:21:56.160 --> 00:21:58.319
So then it it kept building.
00:21:58.480 --> 00:22:13.839
Well, at this point, I was done at the Base exchange, and I made it back to my hangar that I used to work out of, and all of a sudden I walk into a room that's glued with all the people that should be out in the flight line doing our job, and we're all watching it.
00:22:14.079 --> 00:22:19.119
And by that time, they had verified that it was not a little plane.
00:22:19.519 --> 00:22:26.160
Now they had cameras down there, and we were there in that room when the second plane hit.
00:22:26.640 --> 00:22:36.880
When the second plane hit, we were all instantly like a switch changed from the guys watching on TV till we got a job to do now.
00:22:37.039 --> 00:22:37.680
Yeah.
00:22:39.200 --> 00:22:51.200
I remember calling my wife, and this was even before the plane hit the Pentagon and telling her, make sure my laundry's done, because I don't know when I'm coming home.
00:22:52.079 --> 00:22:56.960
So I believe that's when she go went to go get Amy.
00:22:57.119 --> 00:22:57.759
I think.
00:23:01.039 --> 00:23:16.720
As that was developing, I was of course working on a flight line, but with my cell phone and watching everything, and the part that I know felt the worst to me was knowing what those firemen were doing.
00:23:16.880 --> 00:23:17.279
Yeah.
00:23:17.440 --> 00:23:20.160
I was a fireman for sat many years before that.
00:23:20.640 --> 00:23:24.640
And I knew what those guys would be doing, and I know it wouldn't be going the other way.
00:23:24.880 --> 00:23:25.039
Right?
00:23:25.119 --> 00:23:26.480
What they knew they were in there.
00:23:26.799 --> 00:23:27.119
Sure.
00:23:27.279 --> 00:23:34.160
Remember in the beginning, nobody knew that it was only going to be, and I say only going to be 3,000 people.
00:23:34.559 --> 00:23:40.640
Remember, there was a whole lot more people supposed to be in those towers if they would have done it an hour or two later.
00:23:40.799 --> 00:23:41.440
Yeah.
00:23:41.759 --> 00:23:44.319
But I knew there was a lot of firemen.
00:23:44.400 --> 00:23:47.440
I never knew the number of 343 at that time.
00:23:48.960 --> 00:23:55.200
But what hit me and impacted me the most is when I saw the first tower come down.
00:23:55.440 --> 00:23:57.759
And I'm like, oh my God.
00:23:58.160 --> 00:24:00.400
That's like a lot of firefighters.
00:24:00.559 --> 00:24:00.880
Yeah.
00:24:01.279 --> 00:24:02.079
In my mind.
00:24:02.640 --> 00:24:06.160
I sometimes feel guilty that I didn't think, oh, there's civilians in there.
00:24:06.240 --> 00:24:09.039
I'm just thinking, man, that's a lot of firefighters.
00:24:09.359 --> 00:24:09.839
Sure.
00:24:12.000 --> 00:24:13.119
But back to work.
00:24:13.359 --> 00:24:14.240
We went.
00:24:14.960 --> 00:24:16.799
And the second tower came down.
00:24:16.960 --> 00:24:18.799
We're still launching aircraft.
00:24:19.119 --> 00:24:25.200
If you could remember, there were sorties kicked out of Atlantic Cities that were protecting Washington, D.C.
00:24:25.440 --> 00:24:26.960
They were protecting New York City.
00:24:27.119 --> 00:24:28.480
We were refueling them.
00:24:28.640 --> 00:24:30.240
So we were busy.
00:24:31.200 --> 00:24:34.400
At some point during this whole thing, the Pentagon kicked in.
00:24:34.480 --> 00:24:42.400
We got, you know, we got sent up to a different DEF COM and my world changed.
00:24:42.960 --> 00:24:50.079
What I didn't realize till later on is how much my world became normal to me.
00:24:50.559 --> 00:24:51.759
Their world changed.
00:24:52.160 --> 00:24:52.480
Yeah.
00:24:52.720 --> 00:24:53.599
Oh, sure.
00:24:54.480 --> 00:24:55.039
Absolutely.
00:24:55.200 --> 00:25:01.839
And how many times do we say that the families, the families serve with us, and they just they deserve just as much recognition.
00:25:02.400 --> 00:25:06.880
And you've had the fortune, or maybe not fortune, of hearing me speak.
00:25:07.039 --> 00:25:10.480
And I never ever speak without recognizing them.
00:25:10.880 --> 00:25:15.359
A lot of people say to me about how hard it was over there when I got deployed.
00:25:15.519 --> 00:25:18.400
And I say, it was nothing for me.
00:25:18.640 --> 00:25:26.640
I went to work 12 hours in 130 degrees, and I was one of the only people on my team that was able to run engines.
00:25:26.799 --> 00:25:31.359
So I spent most of my time in an oven running engines.
00:25:32.000 --> 00:25:37.279
I would get done work, I'd go grab a beer or two, whatever my ration was at the time.
00:25:37.599 --> 00:25:38.799
And then I would go to bed.
00:25:38.880 --> 00:25:41.119
I'd wake up and I'd keep doing it over and over again.
00:25:41.279 --> 00:25:44.000
And I did that for three, four months straight.
00:25:44.640 --> 00:25:47.200
Now, my wife, that's a different story.
00:25:47.440 --> 00:25:51.759
Because everything I mean, everything I used to do, she had to do.
00:25:52.000 --> 00:25:52.400
That's right.
00:25:52.559 --> 00:25:53.759
She didn't buy into this.
00:25:54.559 --> 00:25:56.559
She didn't put her hand up and say, I will do this.
00:25:56.799 --> 00:25:57.519
Yeah, but she's a trooper.
00:25:58.799 --> 00:26:02.559
If you n if you note if you note Dave's wife, Judy, she's she's a trooper.
00:26:03.519 --> 00:26:05.039
It's always harder on the people at home.
00:26:05.279 --> 00:26:05.839
Oh, for sure.
00:26:07.279 --> 00:26:07.599
Sure.
00:26:08.319 --> 00:26:09.519
Absolutely.
00:26:09.839 --> 00:26:14.640
So, Amy, when you when you think about this memorial and you think about that day.
00:26:15.440 --> 00:26:18.319
What special meaning does the memorial have to you here?
00:26:18.559 --> 00:26:23.440
Because this is just an absolute beautiful, just absolute beautiful way to memorialize.
00:26:24.240 --> 00:26:27.920
It's just another it's a layer of pride.
00:26:28.160 --> 00:26:28.799
You know.
00:26:30.160 --> 00:26:47.039
It's a moment that even before you guys got here this morning, my dad went his way and I came over here, and I just I wanted to sit here and just listen to the water running, listen to the flags flapping.
00:26:48.559 --> 00:26:57.200
Look at the pieces that define who my dad is, define who I am.
00:26:58.000 --> 00:27:00.000
You know, my dad came home that day.
00:27:00.079 --> 00:27:07.359
Uh that I'm not saying that day on 9-11, I'm saying that day when he he finally returned from that deployment.
00:27:07.680 --> 00:27:11.039
And I'm lucky that he came home that day.
00:27:11.279 --> 00:27:15.279
But it wasn't the same dad that left me on 9-11.
00:27:15.519 --> 00:27:16.160
Yeah.
00:27:16.720 --> 00:27:24.319
And, you know, ultimately, when he came home, it I wasn't the same person.
00:27:25.119 --> 00:27:31.440
My mom, my brothers, this fire department, the country, everyone was changed.
00:27:31.599 --> 00:27:55.039
So it being able to come and sit here to reflect, to feel the the feels that we should feel, to take that time to kind of be in the moment and feel it all is a very special thing.
00:27:55.119 --> 00:28:11.599
And to know that my dad poured his heart into this, it's it's a it's a piece that I'll always have connected to my dad, you know, and I'll always have this place to come and sit and reflect.
00:28:11.759 --> 00:28:20.160
And, you know, far far past the years when, you know, time has passed.
00:28:20.319 --> 00:28:20.480
Sure.
00:28:20.720 --> 00:28:21.279
More time.
00:28:21.440 --> 00:28:26.319
I mean, we're at 25 years now, and I bring my children here.
00:28:27.039 --> 00:28:29.039
And you know, it it's interesting though.
00:28:29.119 --> 00:28:34.720
I do want to mention this, and I don't want to give away too much of my story for for my speech.
00:28:34.880 --> 00:28:36.880
But um I was hoping you were gonna say this part.
00:28:37.279 --> 00:28:39.119
If you didn't, I was gonna tell you you need to.
00:28:39.440 --> 00:28:41.839
Well, see, and there we go back with the dad thing again.
00:28:42.079 --> 00:28:42.640
No, no, no.
00:28:44.319 --> 00:28:49.039
You're actually going to you'll understand more of the connection when she tells you.
00:28:49.440 --> 00:28:56.880
So, as you know, I have two beautiful little creatures, 15-year-old, teenage boy.
00:28:57.039 --> 00:29:04.319
So, y'all should be praying for me because these teenage years are that's a lesson in itself, a different story.
00:29:04.400 --> 00:29:06.720
But uh let's get her hazard duty paid, Dave.
00:29:06.799 --> 00:29:08.799
What what what year was he born in?
00:29:09.839 --> 00:29:10.799
2011.
00:29:11.119 --> 00:29:11.759
2011.
00:29:12.079 --> 00:29:16.640
And the day that he was born is May 1st, 2011.
00:29:16.880 --> 00:29:22.960
And that was a significant day for me, as you can imagine, but it was also a significant day for this country.
00:29:23.119 --> 00:29:26.720
It was the day that Ben's Osama bin Laden was killed.
00:29:27.039 --> 00:29:27.519
Wow.
00:29:27.920 --> 00:29:28.400
Yeah.
00:29:28.720 --> 00:29:37.039
So I I was in the NICU with my baby, and here I was again, 9-11 creeping up on me again.
00:29:37.279 --> 00:29:37.599
Yeah.
00:29:37.839 --> 00:29:39.599
The day that another reminder.
00:29:40.079 --> 00:29:46.559
Another reminder that history is not just in the textbooks, not just something that happened.
00:29:47.039 --> 00:29:53.200
My son was being born on a day that, you know, another piece of this history.
00:29:53.599 --> 00:29:58.720
Well, I I certainly can relate to that in a very in a in a very direct way.
00:29:59.119 --> 00:30:02.480
My oldest daughter's birthday is on the 9-11.
00:30:02.720 --> 00:30:03.119
Oh, wow.
00:30:03.440 --> 00:30:09.359
So she was so she was, I can remember we were gonna celebrate her birthday and when that when when it went on.
00:30:09.519 --> 00:30:15.599
So it, you know, it has special meaning for for her as as well, for the both of us as well, each year.
00:30:15.759 --> 00:30:35.200
And each year when I go to, you know, each year I I take a little time from watching the remembrance ceremony in New York City to wish her a happy birthday and and try and make a try and make uh that memory of her of her birthday not so not so not so, you know, it doesn't so it doesn't sting so much for her.
00:30:35.519 --> 00:30:53.599
But Dave, when you when you think about when you think about this this memorial, what what goes what goes through your mind as far as the memories, the dedication to not only the the military, but to those firefighters, your brothers and sisters who perished in that event.
00:30:54.240 --> 00:31:02.640
Unfortunately, I had a lot of time to think about how I wanted to do this memorial because I was at so many other memorials that beat us to it.
00:31:03.920 --> 00:31:07.119
For one reason or another, it took us quite a while.
00:31:07.440 --> 00:31:12.720
Almost ten years to we from when we got the beam to we actually created the memorial.
00:31:13.039 --> 00:31:14.720
So I went to a lot of them.
00:31:14.960 --> 00:31:26.559
It hasn't been brought up yet, but I also play in a bagpipe band, and needless to say, we've done a lot of funerals and ceremonies in direct relation to this.
00:31:27.039 --> 00:31:28.960
And so I've seen a lot of other ones.
00:31:29.119 --> 00:31:32.400
So when I created mine, I wanted it to be simple.
00:31:32.880 --> 00:31:43.119
Simple to the point where I just wanted it to tell the story because it needs to be told and it needs to be remembered and not forgotten.
00:31:43.440 --> 00:31:48.160
So that's why I kept it basically simple.
00:31:48.480 --> 00:31:50.799
But I wanted to include certain things.
00:31:51.039 --> 00:31:56.960
The first thing that I wanted to include was the police fire EMS, these flags here.
00:31:57.119 --> 00:31:57.759
Yeah.
00:31:58.079 --> 00:32:05.599
And I wanted to include the, and as you'll know, John, there's the Space Force is not there.
00:32:05.759 --> 00:32:05.920
Yeah.
00:32:06.160 --> 00:32:07.519
Well, there's a very good reason why.
00:32:07.759 --> 00:32:09.200
In 9-11, there was no Space Force.
00:32:09.440 --> 00:32:10.480
There was no Space Force, yeah.
00:32:10.799 --> 00:32:12.079
Those were the guys that were there.
00:32:12.319 --> 00:32:12.720
Yep.
00:32:12.960 --> 00:32:19.440
And then you have the state of Pennsylvania for Shanksville, and then all three of them are incorporated in that N flag.
00:32:19.759 --> 00:32:23.359
I wanted to keep the more the water flowing.
00:32:23.680 --> 00:32:25.920
That was a primary goal of mine.
00:32:26.079 --> 00:32:28.559
But overall, I wanted to keep it simple.
00:32:29.119 --> 00:32:36.720
The other thing I wanted to do was tie in, and this was a hard one, and which wound up being very simple to me.
00:32:37.200 --> 00:32:39.599
Everything you see here was donated.
00:32:40.000 --> 00:32:42.319
This cost the taxpayer nothing.
00:32:42.640 --> 00:32:46.160
It was all donated, including the property we're sitting on, was donated.
00:32:46.400 --> 00:32:46.799
Wow.
00:32:47.039 --> 00:32:56.960
What I wanted to do was somehow tie in my connection between the fire department, this loss, and the military loss.
00:32:57.599 --> 00:33:02.799
Didn't realize it at the time, but you just experienced one of the reasons why it really works.
00:33:03.039 --> 00:33:06.240
We are in a direct flight line to McGuire Air Force Base.
00:33:06.400 --> 00:33:09.359
And about five minutes ago there was an airplane coming over.
00:33:09.519 --> 00:33:11.920
And we're on firehouse property.
00:33:12.240 --> 00:33:13.440
We got the tie.
00:33:14.480 --> 00:33:17.599
What it also does is it flicks switches.
00:33:18.000 --> 00:33:18.559
Sure.
00:33:19.119 --> 00:33:21.920
Because you didn't see it.
00:33:22.079 --> 00:33:26.160
When that airplane came over, she looked up.
00:33:28.240 --> 00:33:30.160
Can't imagine how many times she did that.
00:33:36.000 --> 00:33:36.799
Sorry.
00:33:37.119 --> 00:33:37.440
Damn.
00:33:37.839 --> 00:33:38.720
Don't apologize.
00:33:38.799 --> 00:33:39.359
Take your time.
00:33:39.599 --> 00:33:40.880
She still does it.
00:33:41.440 --> 00:33:45.200
Every time I got an airplane in, and I'm not on them no more.
00:33:47.599 --> 00:33:48.640
It's hard.
00:33:49.599 --> 00:33:53.359
Yeah, it's uh it it w it will never go away.
00:33:53.440 --> 00:34:06.880
And I and I'll tell you, this memorial is actually what a way to honor your brothers and sisters and the people that lost their lives on that day, and the civilians that lost their lives on that day.
00:34:07.200 --> 00:34:15.360
At a beautiful memorial that just that really just is a sacred ground for local first responders here.
00:34:15.440 --> 00:34:20.400
And I'm I'm sure that many people come in come and see this memorial.
00:34:20.559 --> 00:34:31.519
We'll have the we'll have the location of it down in the show notes so people if they want to come and see it, and the beautiful, beautiful firehouse behind us that's uh in the in these grounds.
00:34:31.760 --> 00:34:49.519
It's a it's a very somber and sacred place for this um I don't mean to interrupt you, but this being the 25th anniversary is it's little significant to me because this will be the last time that I will be chairman of this memorial committee.
00:34:49.920 --> 00:35:02.559
I feel that the memorial has been built, the ceremonies are going on, and the foundation's been laid, and this needs to be handed on to that next generation.
00:35:05.039 --> 00:35:12.639
We we can't continue to be doing this, it needs to be taught, and the next generation needs to take over.
00:35:12.800 --> 00:35:24.960
When I was preparing for this, which actually started about 11 months ago, we're preparing for this last huge celebration we're going to have on Friday.
00:35:26.239 --> 00:35:30.079
It took me literally over two weeks to do my closing statement.
00:35:31.679 --> 00:35:33.360
Which usually is not harsh for me.
00:35:33.599 --> 00:35:35.760
Yeah, you're not at a loss for words normally.
00:35:36.239 --> 00:35:38.639
And it took it took a long time.
00:35:40.320 --> 00:35:44.960
Thank you to Chat GPT because I every time I tried to do it, it I needed help.
00:35:45.119 --> 00:35:45.760
Yeah.
00:35:46.480 --> 00:35:49.360
I just feel like it's it's time.
00:35:50.800 --> 00:35:56.960
And I'm not going away, but it's time to to hand this over after 25 years.
00:35:57.039 --> 00:35:59.199
Somebody somebody else could pick it up.
00:35:59.519 --> 00:35:59.840
Yeah.
00:36:00.320 --> 00:36:01.840
They got everything they need.
00:36:02.400 --> 00:36:04.480
Well, I'm sure, I mean, you've left this.
00:36:04.639 --> 00:36:05.039
You've created.
00:36:05.360 --> 00:36:06.639
There was one thing I forgot to tell you, John.
00:36:06.800 --> 00:36:07.119
I'm sorry.
00:36:07.280 --> 00:36:08.480
Yeah, go ahead, please.
00:36:08.719 --> 00:36:10.000
That flagpole.
00:36:10.239 --> 00:36:15.119
I forgot to tell you about the flagpole, and it is very important to you and me as firefighters.
00:36:15.599 --> 00:36:21.360
So when we were building a monument, I went out looking for a flagpole company to deal with.
00:36:21.519 --> 00:36:26.079
I found many of them out there, and I found one that I kind of hooked up with.
00:36:26.320 --> 00:36:27.360
I kind of liked them.
00:36:27.519 --> 00:36:31.519
It had nothing to do with the price, it's just the guy I was talking to, I I kind of liked.
00:36:32.480 --> 00:36:42.239
So we ordered the flagpole, and when we were done putting the order in, the gentleman says to me, he says, Is there anything else you need?
00:36:42.480 --> 00:36:50.239
I said, Well, you know, I hate to do this, but do you guys sell flags for the flagpole?
00:36:51.199 --> 00:36:58.719
He says, Well, not only do we sell flags, but I want to tell you a quick story.
00:36:59.360 --> 00:37:06.079
The flag that everybody sees the three firemen lifting, yeah, they provide it.
00:37:06.400 --> 00:37:06.960
Really?
00:37:07.199 --> 00:37:14.880
This company has provided that flag for those type monuments every time.
00:37:15.599 --> 00:37:25.760
That company provided us with this flag, and when I need a replacement, that company sends a flag, ties it back into New York City.
00:37:26.400 --> 00:37:28.000
Same company, same flag.
00:37:28.320 --> 00:37:29.440
That's fantastic.
00:37:29.599 --> 00:37:33.119
And I I'm so glad to hear you say this wasn't made in China.
00:37:33.280 --> 00:37:34.800
So it's an American company.
00:37:35.119 --> 00:37:36.079
You know me better.
00:37:37.039 --> 00:37:37.679
I do.
00:37:38.000 --> 00:37:38.639
I do.
00:37:39.119 --> 00:37:41.360
I I I do, absolutely.
00:37:41.519 --> 00:37:51.519
And you know, when you talk about handing this over to the next generation and things like that, it's I'm sure you've got a I'm sure you've got a a a wonderful here with the fire department.
00:37:51.599 --> 00:38:02.320
I'm sure you've got a somebody you can hand this off to that's going to be just as mindful and just as careful and just as passionate about what you've built here to carry it on.
00:38:02.719 --> 00:38:05.199
Well, it's interesting that you say that.
00:38:07.199 --> 00:38:12.239
I'm seeing a shift.
00:38:14.639 --> 00:38:18.079
Remember when we grew up, the the big talk was about December 7th.
00:38:18.800 --> 00:38:18.880
Sure.
00:38:19.199 --> 00:38:19.920
Pearl Pearl Harbor.
00:38:20.880 --> 00:38:24.320
Until this, that was the worst thing that ever happened to America.
00:38:24.559 --> 00:38:25.360
For sure.
00:38:26.079 --> 00:38:31.119
And I'm sure after that there was many ceremonies and all.
00:38:31.440 --> 00:38:36.880
And then eventually they stopped for December 7th.
00:38:37.199 --> 00:38:42.320
And you know you see it in Hawaii every year over the Arizona.
00:38:42.559 --> 00:38:42.880
Yep.
00:38:43.119 --> 00:38:44.800
But how many others do you see?
00:38:45.199 --> 00:38:47.760
And I'm starting to see the same shift.
00:38:48.639 --> 00:39:00.400
Some municipalities, I'm not picking on anyone in particular, I won't even name one, but a lot of them, including our municipality, are now discussing doing a ceremony every five years.
00:39:01.440 --> 00:39:10.320
Well, usually, and you'll understand this shift from the volunteer fire service, once it starts going down that slope, it doesn't stop.
00:39:10.480 --> 00:39:11.760
And that's what concerns me.
00:39:13.599 --> 00:39:21.679
When you go from not doing it every year to going and doing it every five years, at some point you're going to say, all right, well, let's either do it every ten years or just not do it.
00:39:22.000 --> 00:39:33.920
And and that's a that's a key point because uh the more that it's the more that the more space, in my opinion, the more space that you give between those events, the easier it is to become a distant memory.
00:39:34.159 --> 00:39:38.480
You know, you mentioned that you mentioned that as as well, Amy.
00:39:39.039 --> 00:39:44.159
Amy, how many give you the last word as you sit here next to your dad and you sit in this talk?
00:39:44.480 --> 00:39:44.960
Wait, wait, wait.
00:39:45.440 --> 00:39:46.400
You say that again.
00:39:51.360 --> 00:39:53.679
David, I you know, I've known her for a while.
00:39:53.840 --> 00:39:55.760
I think that that happens all the time.
00:39:55.920 --> 00:39:59.119
I just uh you know You didn't tell me no very much.
00:40:00.960 --> 00:40:02.880
Sitting here waiting for that last word.
00:40:03.039 --> 00:40:15.199
Um Amy, as you as you sit here in this place of uh reflection and this the this place, this this sacred ground to memorialize the lives that were lost on that day.
00:40:15.360 --> 00:40:21.920
And you sit here with your dad and and you remember those, you remember that that time of where you were and what we're doing.
00:40:22.880 --> 00:40:27.280
What's the one thing that you want to say to your dad that you never told him?
00:40:27.840 --> 00:40:34.000
Oh yeah, you wanted the last word, didn't you?
00:40:34.320 --> 00:40:40.639
Man, you know, I think that many would expect me to say thank you.
00:40:41.519 --> 00:40:42.159
Right?
00:40:42.719 --> 00:40:44.239
I've told him that.
00:40:44.559 --> 00:40:50.480
I told him thank you for being that hometown hero.
00:40:52.559 --> 00:40:57.679
I've told him more times than he probably could even count.
00:40:57.840 --> 00:40:58.639
I love you.
00:41:00.800 --> 00:41:16.800
But the one thing that I think I have to say to him after looking around and being in this moment and hearing him talk is I'm okay.
00:41:18.000 --> 00:41:19.280
I'm okay.
00:41:21.199 --> 00:41:23.599
And I will never forget.
00:41:24.880 --> 00:41:40.639
And pride is something that has been groomed into me because of those lost moments.
00:41:41.599 --> 00:41:46.480
Because of that instinct of looking at an airplane.
00:41:50.239 --> 00:41:51.920
I'm okay though.
00:41:52.880 --> 00:41:56.400
When the moments feel hard, I still feel lucky.
00:41:57.039 --> 00:41:58.800
I've got my dad.
00:42:00.400 --> 00:42:10.400
I've got lessons that unless I went through what I went through, I wouldn't be the person I am today.
00:42:10.719 --> 00:42:12.480
I wouldn't be a first responder.
00:42:12.800 --> 00:42:15.039
I wouldn't have done the fire academy.
00:42:15.519 --> 00:42:20.400
I wouldn't be helping lives every day.
00:42:20.639 --> 00:42:35.920
I would be another, you know, millennial mom who doesn't talk about 9-11, doesn't teach her child to walk up to a random stranger wearing a vet hat and say thank you for your service.
00:42:36.159 --> 00:42:36.800
Yeah.
00:42:37.280 --> 00:42:40.400
And because of him, I'm okay.
00:42:41.920 --> 00:42:42.880
And that I love him.
00:42:43.360 --> 00:42:45.199
What a wonderful message.
00:42:45.599 --> 00:42:47.440
What a wonderful message.
00:42:48.079 --> 00:42:52.639
I really want to thank both of you for being here today.
00:42:52.800 --> 00:42:57.920
Uh certainly for the invitation to come down and and do this episode with you.
00:42:58.000 --> 00:43:12.159
It's such a such a such a place that that recognizes and memorializes the sacrifice that that those that those uh the firefighters and military and civilians who lost their lives.
00:43:12.400 --> 00:43:22.480
And I'd like to end the show with just a reading of one of the plaques that is located on on one of the walls here.
00:43:22.880 --> 00:43:29.360
And if you get it I'm telling you, if you get a chance, our listeners, if you get a chance, I'm gonna put the address to the memorial.
00:43:29.519 --> 00:43:35.440
You can see online the pictures of the memorial, how well it's done.
00:43:36.000 --> 00:43:38.400
There's some pictures of ceremonies that were here.
00:43:38.639 --> 00:43:42.559
Of course, Friday, uh Friday, there's gonna be, you know, the memorial here as well.
00:43:43.039 --> 00:43:55.280
You know, I I think the one thing to really highlight, if I can, about the difference of our ceremonies in the past, and I say our ceremonies, I didn't plan a single one.
00:43:55.440 --> 00:43:59.760
You know, I am honored that this is the second out of the 25 that we're doing.
00:44:00.559 --> 00:44:03.519
That I have been asked to speak at this ceremony.
00:44:03.760 --> 00:44:06.320
But I've never missed a ceremony ever.
00:44:06.960 --> 00:44:09.519
I'm here every single year.
00:44:10.719 --> 00:44:15.679
The one thing that I think is going to be so special about this one is it's going to be a celebration.
00:44:15.920 --> 00:44:17.280
Let's celebrate those.
00:44:17.519 --> 00:44:20.639
Let's let's remember them, but let's celebrate them.
00:44:20.880 --> 00:44:28.639
And we we're gonna have amazing vocal artists, up-and-coming country artists.
00:44:28.800 --> 00:44:30.480
Chris Greiner is gonna be here.
00:44:30.639 --> 00:44:35.519
And if you haven't heard him staying alone, he is very talented.
00:44:35.840 --> 00:44:39.519
You know, so he started out as a firefighter in the station right here.
00:44:39.760 --> 00:44:40.960
Oh no, what a connection!
00:44:41.280 --> 00:44:43.599
Yeah, and he is He's one of our firefighters.
00:44:43.679 --> 00:44:44.400
Oh, that's fascinating.
00:44:44.800 --> 00:44:46.639
He is doing amazing things.
00:44:46.880 --> 00:44:56.480
And Colleen and you know, just the pieces that you know my dad mentioned about laying that groundwork, bringing them all back together.
00:44:56.639 --> 00:44:59.760
Some of those who started here with us in that ceremony.
00:44:59.840 --> 00:45:08.239
And unfortunately, you know, those like my uncle Rick, who's no longer here with us, is still here with a piece of that in the ceremony.
00:45:08.400 --> 00:45:16.400
And I think that what a exciting night it's gonna be on Friday night to just all be here together and still have.
00:45:16.639 --> 00:45:18.239
I'm bringing my cheer team.
00:45:18.400 --> 00:45:25.119
I've got, I am the one of the coaches for the varsity cheerleading team over at Pennsbury, and some of my cheerleaders are coming.
00:45:25.199 --> 00:45:28.800
So I'll have my children in the crowd, my dad's gonna be up there.
00:45:29.039 --> 00:45:31.519
I'm really excited for what's to come on Friday.
00:45:31.599 --> 00:45:36.320
And I really think that, you know, as many people can get out here and celebrate with us.
00:45:36.480 --> 00:45:37.840
It's gonna be a very special night.
00:45:38.239 --> 00:45:39.199
I appreciate that.
00:45:39.360 --> 00:45:45.440
I'll I will put the address and the link to the dedicated the memorial in the in the show notes.
00:45:45.679 --> 00:45:48.239
I want to thank you both for the invitation.
00:45:49.679 --> 00:45:50.000
Absolutely.
00:45:51.519 --> 00:45:52.079
No, not at all.
00:45:52.639 --> 00:45:53.199
I know you're an army.
00:45:53.760 --> 00:45:55.280
I knew he was gonna take that last word.
00:45:55.679 --> 00:45:57.280
Here we here here we go with the R.
00:45:58.800 --> 00:46:03.119
Dave Dave was uh Dave joined the civilian branch of the military, the air, the Air Force.
00:46:03.360 --> 00:46:09.360
So this is this is the uh reading of one of the plaques dedicated in the memorial.
00:46:09.440 --> 00:46:19.440
It and it states This monument is dedicated to all those that lost their lives on September 11th, 2001, and since in the war on terrorism.
00:46:19.760 --> 00:46:35.280
Tully Town Borough dedicated this memorial on September 11th, 2022, in memory of all the souls lost on that date and that have lost loved ones not only on 9-11, but to all those still suffering.
00:46:35.840 --> 00:46:38.320
This is Mind on the Line.
00:46:38.639 --> 00:46:42.639
Thank you for joining us for another episode of Mind on the Line.
00:46:42.800 --> 00:46:51.280
If today's conversation resonated with you, we encourage you to subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who may need to hear it.
00:46:51.519 --> 00:46:58.719
Every conversation helps break the stigma surrounding mental health and reminds those who serve that they are never alone.
00:46:58.960 --> 00:47:11.360
If you're a first responder, healthcare professional, dispatcher, veteran, or someone who supports those on the front lines, remember this taking care of your own well being is not a sign of weakness.
00:47:11.519 --> 00:47:14.960
It's a sign that allows you to continue serving others.
00:47:15.199 --> 00:47:19.519
Until next time, take care of yourself, take care of each other.
00:47:19.840 --> 00:47:24.719
This is Mine on the Line, because no one carries this alone.