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Never Forget 9/11, Now 17 Years Ago

By
Real Estate Agent with eXp Realty of California, Inc. CA DRE #01490977

Never Forget 9/11, Now 17 Years Ago

 

It's hard to believe it was 17 years ago, but I suspect most people remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when they first heard the horrific news on 9/11/2001!

 

I certainly remember what I was doing when I first heard the news about a plane hitting the Twin Towers. I was working at a small Internet marketing company, HookMedia, in downtown Boston. The company had gone Chapter 11 due to the dot com melt-down, and was sold to an international media conglomerate.

 

Chalk Art Memory in Carlsbad 9/11/2011

9/11 chalk art in Carlsbad

 

Lucky me, I was the last official employee as VP of Human Resources, and my final role was helping to close out the company by retrieving and reviewing all records regarding creditors. It was a painful and emotional process since I had been hired in 1999 as the 6th employee, and was responsible for hiring about 125 people in a little over a year and opening 2 additional offices in Atlanta and New York City.

 

I was on the way out the door when word came out about the first plane hitting the Twin Towers, but I was not yet fully aware of the horrible details about the terrorist attacks, and everything else that was occurring.

 

I spent virtually the rest of that day in front of the TV with my younger college-aged daughter, hugging, crying, and in shock. Our older daughter was across the country in LA at college, and with the shutdown and evacuation of many high-rise buildings in Boston that day, the fear grew that things could get worse. Not being together as a family at this horrible time was almost unbearable.

 

The vivid memory of watching the live coverage of the one tower collapsing on TV will always remain with me, as will all the heroic stories, and the sheer horror of the thousands of lives lost.

 

Ironically, at this time last year many were struggling with Hurricane Irma, and now we have Hurricane Florence heading to the SE Coast, with mandatory evacuations already in place!

Posted by

Jeff Dowler, CRS
Certified Residential Specialist / Realtor®


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Comments (11)

Sheila Anderson
Referral Group Incorporated - East Brunswick, NJ
The Real Estate Whisperer Who Listens 732-715-1133

Good morning Jeff. There are many experiences that stay with us forever, but none as universal as this.

Sep 11, 2018 06:48 AM
Grant Schneider
Performance Development Strategies - Armonk, NY
Your Coach Helping You Create Successful Outcomes

Good morning Jeff - I was very involved in SHRM as the New York State Council Director.  Our big chapter in NYC went over and above to work with displaced people.  The HR people in some of those twin tower firms were going to be the last ones out and some did not make it out.  Vivid memory for me.

Sep 11, 2018 07:01 AM
Jeff Dowler, CRS
eXp Realty of California, Inc. - Carlsbad, CA
The Southern California Relocation Dude

Sheila Anderson 

I hope everyone takes some time to remember, and think about that day, as we go about our busy days. Sadly, our world has not, unfortunately, become a less scary place.

Jeff

Sep 11, 2018 07:25 AM
Jeff Dowler, CRS
eXp Realty of California, Inc. - Carlsbad, CA
The Southern California Relocation Dude

Hi Grant Schneider 

It was a horrible time for our country and all those who lost family, friends, and colleagues. It's still painful to read about and see photos and videos, but important to do.

Jeff

Sep 11, 2018 07:30 AM
Hannah Williams
HomeStarr Realty - Philadelphia, PA
Expertise NE Philadelphia & Bucks 215-820-3376

I will never forget the shock Jeff Dowler, CRS  when watching the Today Show and seeing the planes crashing into the twin towers . I was speaking to my friend who was also a Re/Max broker on the phone . The whole experience left me numb

Sep 11, 2018 09:04 AM
Nina Hollander, Broker
Coldwell Banker Realty - Charlotte, NC
Your Greater Charlotte Realtor

Parallel experiences, Jeff... I think we all somehow were sharing similar days on 9/11. In my case, I was so shocked and so worried about tracking down friends and relatives who worked in the WTC area, I couldn't cry. It was probably about 6pm when people had checked in with me that I start crying uncontrollably.

Sep 11, 2018 09:27 AM
Michael Jacobs
Pasadena, CA
Pasadena And Southern California 818.516.4393

Good morning, Jeff --- your post and others serve as a reminder to each of us: where we were, the people,  the places,  the things/ the activities,  the emotions, so many aspects of the day.

Sep 11, 2018 09:42 AM
Ron and Alexandra Seigel
Napa Consultants - Carpinteria, CA
Luxury Real Estate Branding, Marketing & Strategy

Jeff,

I think we all remember the moment we heard this.  We were having breakfast in Yontville, and someone walked in announcing it.  His wife was in NY on a biz trip...she was fine...A

Sep 11, 2018 12:59 PM
Sally K. & David L. Hanson
EXP Realty 414-525-0563 - Brookfield, WI
WI Real Estate Agents - Luxury - Divorce

It doesn't seem like it can possibly be that long ago...and yet to some it must still feel like yesterday.

Sep 11, 2018 02:29 PM
George Souto
George Souto NMLS #65149 FHA, CHFA, VA Mortgages - Middletown, CT
Your Connecticut Mortgage Expert

Jeff I remember watching what was going happening on TV why I was getting ready for work.  I could not believe what I was seeing.  I kept on waiting for someone to come on and say it wasn't real.

Sep 11, 2018 03:39 PM
Kathy Streib
Cypress, TX
Home Stager/Redesign

Jeff- you know, I'd been so focused on this being the Anniversary of September 11 that I'd totally forgotten about the anniversary of Irma...and I was here in South Florida!!!

Sep 11, 2018 06:02 PM