A generation of Americans has no memory of 9/11.
At the Gary Sinise Foundation, we're preserving the stories of those who experienced it so they can be shared with generations to come. We must never forget the pain we endured, the heroism we witnessed, or the togetherness we felt.
Your story is part of our history. Will you share it?
Gary's Story
September 11th, 2001. Every American alive then remembers that moment and can answer the inevitable question: Where were you on 9/11? I stared at the television in shock and disbelief, along with the entire country, as we watched smoke pour from the twin towers of the World Trade Center.
We watched on live television as people leapt to their deaths from the top floors. Then, another report came in that a third airplane had crashed into the Pentagon. About twenty minutes later, a fourth airplane crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. We later learned it was United Flight 93, seemingly bound for the White House, until the passengers courageously chose to take back the plane.
Every story preserves the history of September 11th for generations to come.
History At Risk
Only 14 states require education about 9/11. Those who lived through it carry memories no history book can capture. Sharing our experiences helps future generations understand what happened that day and how America responded.
Your story preserves the courage, sacrifice, and compassion shown during one of our nation’s darkest moments. Will you share it?
Stories We'll Never Forget
“Tom’s remains have never been recovered but I still hope someday to bring my soulmate home to rest.”
“I had been based in Boston for 16 years. These weren't simply names on a crew manifest. They were our pilots.”
“I was part of the American Airlines Care Team, so I followed procedures, called in and started packing my bag in case I was activated. By 5 PM I was boarding a flight from DFW to Boston, one of four planes flying that night escorted by F-16s with orders that if we deviate from our course, to shoot us down.”
“I was on Interstate 95 heading south when the second plane hit and,I realized that the United States was under attack. I raced down to Ft. Did where I was immediately turned around and ordered back to help at Ground Zero.”
“I felt such a sense of loss but also profound pride in how our nation came together during that time. It was truly remarkable. Tragedy has a way of bringing people together despite their differences.”
“The ache in every fiber of my being knowing my dad was working at Windows on the World was like nothing I had ever felt before. As I frantically called my dad's phone with no connection ever being made, life felt like it was spiraling out of control.”
“Just then the plane hit the Pentagon. One person on that plane was an attorney who had previously worked at our firm. She was able to call her husband on her cell phone before the crash.”
“Twenty-five years ago, I wondered what kind of world I was bringing my child into. Today, I have come to realize the better question was: What kind of people was God calling us to raise for this world?”
“By the time I arrived at work that day we were in DefCon DELTA. That evening prior to leaving work, I noticed fighter jets that had been in storage on the base were being moved to other locations. Over the next few days and weeks, some were cannabilized, others were receiving those parts and getting moved to the flight line.”
“I left the house to go pick up my son at daycare; I didn't know what was going on, but I wanted us to all be together.”
“; the place where the Declaration of Independence was signed, the place where democracy was founded and the place where the ideas of liberty and freedom for all began; were to synchronize bombings on commuter trains and buses departing Philadelphia throughout the Delaware Valley?”
“It was like being in a mausoleum haunted by the ghosts that hadn't quite settled into the afterlife. Empty seats. Hushes beside certain offices.”
“I had been based in Boston for 16 years. These weren't simply names on a crew manifest. They were our pilots.”
“I had no idea what was unfolding in New York when I walked into the kitchen and began pouring myself a cup of coffee. Without warning, our building shook violently, almost like an earthquake. The first explanation my mind offered was one of the manhole explosions that had been reported in Georgetown during the previous months, but that made no sense.”
“On 9/18 a week later I had my first day off. I didn’t tell anyone but I went down to help at ground zero. I was there all day.”
“was a pilot for American Airlines and on 9-11-01 I was flying a Boeing 767 (same type that hit the Twin Towers) from Caracas, Venezuela to NY.”
“Our drill sergeants stopped training, gathered us together and took off their hats......they never did that! They spoke to us like humans...like men. No longer recruits or privates to be broken down and built back up.”
“That ride north on the New Jersey Turnpike toward the Lincoln Tunnel will forever be etched in my mind. Seeing the smoke billowing from lower Manhattan while traveling on roads that were eerily empty was surreal.”
