Where were you on 9/11? How do you feel about today?

I was assigned to the HHB 6/52 ADA (Patriot) as a member of the Communications Relay Team. A few weeks later, we were on a deployment to Kuwait as part of what was Operation Southern Watch.

I was working in Boston for the New England Organ Bank. SWAT showed up to the Sheraton next door. We had transplants underway and donors in process. Even when the blood products were put on hold, we made some amazing things happen that day. It was amazing to see what teamwork and talent can do.

I was doing civilian Security Manager duties in Germany. The MP Desk Sergeant told me that a plane had hit the World Trade Center. I was thinking about a Cessna or some other light plane......Just after I entered the MP station, we saw the second plane hit the 2nd Tower. The entire next week was a rush of images, and security measures, as we feared other attacks in Europe, that left us all drained and exhausted. But, at least we finally got to go home. In NY many people's families never came home. There's not really any big celebrations planned 'way up here', but I'm planning to go up to Ft. Wainwright, and visit with friends.

I was stationed at Kunsan AB, ROK at the time, but was up at Osan AB for ALS. We had been in class for 2 days at that point and I was in my room that night doing homework with the TV on in the background. Suddenly, the background noise stopped and the light from the TV changed causing me to look up from my notebook.

As I looked up I saw the first tower with smoke pouring from it with the headline "Plane crashes into World Trade Center" at the bottom of the screen. My first thought was "It's a perfectly clear day, how the hell did a plane hit a building that big?"

As I sat there digesting that question, I saw the second plane hit...

I spent the rest of the night watching the news and remember watching in disbelief as those proud buildings fell.

I remember a feeling of helplessness rushing over me because I was so far from home and I couldn't do anything... I couldnt even get information from friends and family that lived/worked in NYC.

I ran through about every possible emotion over the hours and days to come. Happiness that all my loved ones were safe, sadness that so many had lost their lives, anger at those that had done these horrible things, and finally pride in how people rose to the occasion and came together.

In my opinion, what makes this day so hard for me, now 14 years later, is how far in the opposite direction our country has gone...
Gone is the unity and pride.
Gone is the love we had for our fellow countrymen.
Gone is the respect for first responders & military.

It has all been replaced by hatred and distrust.

I hope I get to see our country return to that former glory again & I pray it doesn't take another tragedy of this magnitude to do it.

God bless the United States of America.

I was in the CO cabin of the USS Falcon when the first plane hit. Like everyone the news was running in the background no sound. My CO called me at asked me what my assessment was, my initial assessment was wrong. I was standing in his office when the second plane struck and he turned to me and said "So much for your idea that this was an aviation mishap" Did not sleep much for the next two weeks had my retirement canceled and spent the next five years embroiled in two wars, lots of IEDs a few mines here and there, lots of PSD mission. But, I was proud to serve and the experience changed my life for unmeasurably and forever.

I was at Fort Campbell Ky.
I remember when it happened because I was at the front gate getting some paperwork straight and the MP came in and told everyone what happened and that the gate was closed and return to your units or your house.

PFC (Join to see)
I was nearing the end of the work day cleaning up and getting ready to go home.

There were a couple of reservists assigned to my command who were doing their 2 week active duty stints that came running in the shop saying that the first tower had just been hit. We turned on CNN Desktop to watch the coverage and the tower had just collapsed. It seemed like seconds later the second tower was hit. It was then I knew it was no accident and I had a strong suspicion that it was orchestrated by Osama Bin Laden.

Entrepreneurship class my last semester in high school. I remember it very vividly as if it were yesterday.

I was in Mannheim, GE...so it was at the end of the duty day.
It really didn't hit me....my boss's daughter came in, looking for her dad, she watched the news, and had tears in her eyes. It just didn't shock me. I never understood why.
Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it now.

I was an the lead Intelligence Systems Instructor at the Battle Staff Training Facility, for the MAGTF Staff Training Program on MCB Quantico. I was walking between my two buildings when one of my contractors told me a plane had hit the World Trade Center.

At this point we thought it was an accident.

I ran back to my main building (Secure) and flipped the news on the big screens. It was right around that point that the second plane hit. Most of my guys weren't in the office that day, but the boss was (LtCol), and when I knocked on his door all I could say was "You're going to want to get everyone back here, sir."

Over the next couple hours, things just kept getting worse. My wife was stationed on Quantico as well, and she was getting frantic phone calls from EVERYONE making sure we were ok.

I started boxing up equipment. We had just gotten back from MARFORRES, on a training run and they didn't have of their Intel Systems yet, so we were going to lend them one of ours to get them running. I ended up flying out there as soon as planes were running again. It was VERY strange being the only person on the plane at that point.