09/11/2026
8:30 PM
“None of us will ever forget this day.”
President Bush addresses the nation. During the speech, he announces that “terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America. These acts shatter steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve.”
As a firefighter who lived during that day, I can tell you it stung a lot. Watching the event unfold on TV, I instantly knew when the first tower fell, a lot of people died. I knew a lot of firefighters climbing those stairs, breaching walls, putting water on the fire, just died. And that was hard. You also knew the police and EMS response along with everyone else around those buildings were also probably dead.
Ask any firefighter and their first instinct is to go. Saddle up and do what you trained for. We were fighting mad. Reality was quickly passed down - get ready. Evil may strike here next.
We remember that day - the places we were, and the people who were lost. We learned from that day - Policies changed and training was altered. We grew that day - What was meant to shatter us, made us stronger. Amen.
