9/11 Remembrance on the day & posted to my facebook page:

As I sit here and wait to hear John Charles Willett's name called during the name ceremony as I have over the past 24 years, I remember that day in 2001 as if it was yesterday.

I had worked all night and, at about 8:15am, was home, turned on the TV and tried to sleep. Too tired to pay much attention, but came awake as I saw the clip of the second plane hitting the South Tower and the aftermath. I actually thought I was watching a movie.

Shocked and now awake, my first thoughts were of John who worked at Cantor Fitzgerald. Immediately I called his work number which rang for about a second, cut off, then tried his cell. Crickets.

My next thought was call my friend Beth Ryder at work which was across the street from the Towers at Deutsche Bank. Crickets again.

I wanted to offer both my apartment as a place to rest and sleep if need be, not yet fully grasping the enormity of the destruction.

Still partially out of it, unsuccessful at reaching either friend, I ran out to buy food and try to figure out what to do next.

The rest of the day was spent trying to contact both John and Beth and think about any other friends who might need a place to stay.

To say the day was horrifying is an understatement.

About a day or so later, Beth called me and was as OK as she could be after having to run for her life for hours. She has since passed away due to health issues.

Not hearing from John, but having the gut feeling he was gone, I still felt it was my duty to start his Missing Person's Report.

I'd found his good friend in his hometown, who helped provide some of John's personal information to help the NYPD. It felt surreal but the absolute right thing to do. Elizabeth Taylor was outside coming from the Armory as I was going in which was a strange but definite confirmation I was doing the right thing.

The days that followed were numbing, heartbreaking, confusing and scary.

Over the next few weeks, I found out many of my coworkers were First Responders I'd been working with on the TV show Third Watch. They were also part of my local Precinct, ESU 1 and housed on my block. I'd known most for some time. Too many perished.

2 of my apartment building neighbors had partners who didn't make it out of the Twin Towers. One used to cry and scream all the time and the other tried to jump off of our roof.

I watched as cars transported the remnants and personal effects of the deceased on the way to the Medical Examiner’s Office. It was like the parting of the Red Sea on East 23rd Street, except you could hear a pin drop. The silence was haunting.

There are some things you never forget.

In the years that followed, I made it my business to go to the Precinct's 9-11 ceremony. It's more than a THANK YOU to those who sacrificed.

It is gratitude.

It is remembrance.

It is a promise not to forget.

I am eternally grateful, and always will be.