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http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/09/0920_condolence2.htmlThere are times, when one is lucky enough to meet an individual who will forever impact your life. I was one of those lucky individuals in the summer of 1994. I was 16 years old and preparing for an adventure that would forever change my life. It would be my first time away from home, the first time I had ever flown, and my first time in a new country. I was not sure what to think, but Ann was there at the airport in Barcelona, waiting with a comforting yet excited smile. During the next three weeks of Project Marco Polo 1994, I was able to learn from Ann, laugh with Ann, and acquire new life goals from the experiences we shared together. It will be a month tomorrow since the loss of Ann, but not a day has gone by where I have not thought of Ann, grieved for Ann, and prayed for her and her loved ones. The thought of Ann brings a smile to my face, but the loss of Ann brings sadness to my heart. Thank you, Ann, for making me one of those lucky individuals. I along with many others will miss you. My condolences to Ann's family and friends.—Dustin Schauer, Lincoln, Nebraska, PMP 1994
To the parents of Bernard Brown, Asia Cottom, and Rodney Dickens: Here it is over a month since this tragedy, and I still have tears fill in my eyes when I see these three names. I feel as if these are my little angels. The pain strikes me as if they are actually my children. Please except my deepest condolences. Please inform me of any funds in the memory of these angels. You are in my heart and prayers forever.—Gina Thompson, Santa Monica, Ca.
It has now been a month. I thought that I was beginning to deal with this unimaginable situation, but I was wrong. I miss you two incredibly. Joe, you were more that just my eye-rolling, head-swinging boss, and Ann, you were so much more than that insane, cigarette-smoking, diet Coke-drinking woman who ran travel, you were like older siblings to me. I know that I'm not the only one who still feels this way. I can't say anything more that hasn't already been said, but I would like to share a few song lyrics with everyone. Jimmy Buffett is one of my all time favorite artists, but even Jimmy hasn't been able to cheer me up. In the days following recent events, I did come across this song, Oyster and Pearls:
Lindbergh left Long Island
Thumbed his nose at gravity
And climbed into the heavens.
When he returned to earth that night everything had changed,
For the pilot and the planet, everything was rearranged.
We're a pretty mixed-up bunch
Of crazy human beings
It's written on our rocket ships
And in early cave wall scenes.
How does it happen,
How do we know,
Who sits and watches
Who does the show?
Some people love to lead
And some refuse to dance.
Some play it safely, others take a chance.
Still, it's all a mystery
This place we call the world
Where most live as oysters
While some become pearls.
Elvis was the only man from Northeast Mississippi
Who could shake his hips and still be loved by rednecks, cops, and hippies.
It's something more than DNA that tells us who we are
It's method and it's magic, we are of the stars.
Some make the world go round, others watch it turn.
Still it's all a mystery
This place we call the world.
Most are fine as oysters
While some become pearls.
I love and miss you guys. I'll see you when I get there!—James "The Red" Pleasants, NGS Geography Education Intern, 1998 http://www.militarychild.org/press/bernardbrownii.htmThe Browns were joyful when Taylor told them Bernard had been selected to represent his middle school on the California trip.
"Miss Taylor, who was from Sierra Leone, Africa, thought my son was the best candidate at his school for the job and I was really proud of him," Brown said. But there was mixed emotions when the family sat down on Sept. 9, 2001, to talk about the trip.
"I knew he was a strong swimmer and I was sure he could do all the things they wanted him to do," Brown said. "The two kids from the other schools were selected because the teachers thought they could do whatever was expected of them, too.
"It's just so happened that on that date, we talked about death," he recalled. "They're going to do kayaking and things inner city kids don't normally do. So I said, 'Son, be careful.' They'd put a disclaimer in the paperwork that said death could happen. But not in my wildest dreams did I think he'd die before he could get there."http://www.courttv.com/assault_on_america/0919_memorial_ap.htmlIn Washington, a standing-room-only crowd filled Saint Matthew's Cathedral for a memorial Mass for David Charlebois, 39, the co-pilot of American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon.
About 1,000 people, including several hundred American Airlines pilots and flight attendants, packed the church Charlebois used to attend to celebrate his life and comfort each other.
"He was a very sociable person who loved being surrounded by people," said friend Tom Hayes. "The only time he lost patience was when dealing with bigotry, ignorance or hatred."http://www.saratogamuseum.org/burlingame/chic.mhtml"Dad's greatest dream was to be a pilot himself, but the war ended before he got his chance," said Debra. "Chic and my dad really shared this dream of being a Naval aviator."
Charles Burlingame had been known since infancy as Chic. "His grandfather was known as Charlie, and his father was called Chuck," his wife recalled. An aviation enthusiast from the age of six when he built a model airplane as big as he was out of scrap material, his boyhood dream was to attend a service academy and become a pilot.
He fulfilled the first part of his childhood dream by by earning a presidential appointment (from Lyndon Johnson) to the United States Naval Academy in 1967, the year he graduated from Anaheim High School.
"Chic was always very proud of that presidential appointment (as opposed to congressional) for one reason and one reason only, and that was because of our father's status as retired military," said Debra.http://www.pridedepot.com/features/oped/Jmay_sept11glbts.htmDAVID CHARLEBOIS, 39: Co-pilot on American Flight 77, was an openly gay pilot for American Airlines whose commitment and modesty garnered undying respect from those who knew him. Charlebois was the co-pilot on Flight 77 before it was hijacked and crashed into the Pentagon Sept. 11. He had been flying for American for about 10 years and was certified as a first officer on Boeing 757s and 767s.
"He was an exceptional pilot," said Doug Wood, another openly gay pilot for American and close personal friend of Charlebois'. "Flying with him was truly a joy." As he spoke, Wood was writing a eulogy for Charlebois, which he presented to American Airline employees at a memorial service Sept. 21. He was finding it difficult to put Charlebois' life into words, a man he described as an amazing role model. He was devoted to his partner of 14 years, Tom Hay, and committed to his family, Wood said. Charlebois lived near Washington, D.C.’s popular Dupont Circle neighborhood with his partner and their border collie, Chance.
...JOE FERGUSON, 39: Director, Geography Outreach Program, National Geographic leading children on expedition to the Santa Barbara Channel Islands. A revered educator who was devoted to his students, and to education in general, Joe Ferguson was one of those killed when American Airlines Flight 77 was hijacked and crashed into the Pentagon Sept. 11.
The openly gay director of National Geographic's Geography Education Outreach Program, Ferguson, 39, was accompanying a colleague and three teacher-student pairs on an educational trip to California. A native of Mississippi who completed a master's degree in geography at Ohio University, Ferguson lived in Washington, D.C., and joined the Society in 1987 as one of the first full-time employees of the Geography Education Outreach Program.Many outstanding people died that day when Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon. Here's to their memories: may they never be tarnished with false stories of their last moments.
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