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

COL Charles Williams I don't think anyone who was old enough to remember 9/11 will ever forget what they were doing that day. I was a Junior in high school, sitting in my American Government class and I remember the teacher turning on the TV. I remember feeling numb, my brain was having a hard time wrapping itself around the truth my eyes were telling it. So there I was looking at the chaos surrounding me; some were crying hysterically, others looked as shocked and numb as I felt. The school announced over the intercom that they would not be ending the day early but noted that some families may come to check us out sooner. The shock slowly became anger and in that moment I wanted to hurt those that had hurt us. I wanted all those lost lives to be avenged. Then that anger quickly turned into compassion and sorrow for the families of those lost lives. To some people 9/11 is just a historical event, they were too young to remember or were not born yet. But for those that remember, we will never forget.

I was at home on my first leave in a year, so I slept in. I got up in the morning and saw the first tower burning and then saw the 2nd plane hit the other tower. My wife had been watching the whole time. I got a call from work in a few hours letting me know we were going on standby and to stay close to the phone. I will never forget where I was or how I felt seeing the second tower take a direct hit.

I had just gotten out the April prior & had just returned to college. I was sitting in my 0700 Illustration class & was the only one listening to the radio on my headset.

I remember when it happened. The report came over the news. I looked up & everyone else was staring down at their work. Everything just kinda went into slow motion. I broke the silence by telling them that someone just flew planes into the WTC. Everyone stopped. Even our stereotypical hippie instructor (complete w/ the acid flashbacks) had that look of shock on his face. We found a TV & rolled it into the class & before long everyone in the building was in there watching it with us.

I remember walking back to my dorm room waiting - hoping - for my phone to ring telling me to come back to service.

On 09/11/2001, I was stationed at Ft. Campbell, KY. I lived off base in the small "town" of Oak Grove, KY. I had gone home after doing PT at my unit, and was just finishing up in the shower when the first plane struck. As I got out, my wife came into the bedroom, and told me that a friend of ours down the street had called and said that a plane had hit one of the World Trade Center towers. I instantly knew that our nation had just been attacked, and I remember telling my wife "That was no accident - we've been attacked by terrorists." I knew this because I had worked in aviation for the previous 16 years, and knew that no commercial airline pilot would ever allow his plane to be flown into a building I threw on my uniform, while my wife watched the news. As I was leaving the house, the second plane struck and my wife cried out "Oh my GOD! - a second plane just hit the other tower!" I jumped in my truck, and raced in. On the way in, I was listening to the news, and heard that another plane might have struck the pentagon. I got to the back gate, and as I pulled through, I noticed that I was the only vehicle on the road going through that gate at the time (though there might have been a car or two ahead, there were none behind me). The MPs shut the gate just after I pulled through it - I could see them in my rearview mirror closing it. After that, no one got on base except though the main gate. I spent the rest of the day pretty much doing what I could, and watching the news.

COL Charles Williams - I was in the Command Center of one of the nuclear weapons complex facilities in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, participating in an exercise, when we got word of the plane hitting the first tower. The exercise quickly transformed into an actual event as we immediately increased the THREATCON, implemented enhanced security measures at all the Oak Ridge sites, pulled out the big guns (typically, at that time, kept within reach but out of sight), and alerted all off-duty personnel to assume a stand-by role.

Second grade music class was where we found out. If I remember right we watched the second one hit the second building, can't remember if it was live or not though as ND is an hour behind NYC and I think the times I read on the reports would have put the planes hitting at around the time we were getting to school so it may have been the news replaying the footage. Either way we had the news on all day that day.

I was braving the traffic on I35 with way to little coffee in my system. I took a bit for the reality of what had happened to set in. By the time I made it to work forks were gathering around the small television my boss had in his office. This was the beginning of the path leading me back to the Army.

At work as the safety director at a live-in facility for persons with MR/DD.

The boss called and said turn on the TV, an unusual request. I shall never forget.

AF 1 flew over on the way to Offutt AFB and it was so low I could almost shake the president's hand.

NEVER forget. My H.S. home was also less than 10 miles from where Flight 93 went down.

When the first plane hit I was actually measuring a garage for vinyl siding. (I had been retired 8 years and was the GM of a home improvement company) I got back into my car and heard the news on the Bob & Tom Radio Show....I headed toward my next appointment when they got serious and reported the second strike. I headed back to the shop....And 2 hours later sent everyone home.... I feel the world change on that morning, and I believe we have to change a little bit with it if we as a free society are to survive.

Finished PT at Fort Campbell KY! I was pretty pissed and nervous at the same time. It was a lot going on with out a lot of answers for young Private James. There were many faces I saw that day, some scared because they only joined for the free college and others I saw Anger and focused determination. The later gained my trust as we flew to Afghanistan a few months later. Don't mess with the USA! Rakkasan! Screaming Eagles! Air Assault!