Remembering 9/11: From the classroom

This semester, once again I am blessed to be able to stand in front of two classes at Marist, teaching journalism, on Monday and Thursday. In the morning, at 8 a.m. class, it’s Intro to Journalism. In the afternoon, at the 12:30 p.m. class, it’s Sports Reporting. Today, I asked each class to reflect upon 9/11. The morning class consists of mostly sophomores, men and women about the same age as my oldest son Joey, born in 1999. These kids were toddlers on 9/11, so their remembrances of the day are mostly vague. In the afternoon, an older group of men and women had some more vivid recollections, none more poignant than the young man sitting to my left. I asked the class, “was anyone touched directly by 9/11?” The young man, now a junior at Marist, raised his hand. “My dad,” he said, “was a firefighter.” Then, he lowered his head. The kid didn’t have to say another word, but he chose to tell the whole story.

His dad, a proud FDNY, called his mom at 8 a.m. on 9/11, the then-3-year-old kid’s first day at preschool. “Lemme know how Robbie’s first day at preschool is, OK?” Those were the last words his mom heard from this Forever Hero, who perished in the line of duty, attempting to save others from the massive wreckage. The junior at Marist, now 20 years old, has a brother two years younger. He also has a brother who was one of the last “9/11 babies” … his mom found out she was pregnant very soon after the baby’s father died a hero’s death. This saint of a woman raised three boys on Staten Island, amid the unspeakable grief of losing her husband and the father of their children. Both classes have a writing assignment, due Thursday: Write a personal remembrance of 9/11, what it means to you, what it means to your family, what it means to our country. One brave Marist junior, a kid who didn’t have to tell his story but chose to do so with a smile on his face, is exempt from this assignment. He earned his A on this paper already, for honoring his father’s memory by growing into the respectful young man he is as a Marist student.