Gander, Newfoundland: Hannah O'Rourke and Sandra O'Reilly Taylor, women from two different worlds who were tossed together in the turbulent wake of September 11, now share one of those bonds made of awful tragedy. Hannah and husband Dennis of Lawrence, N.Y., a Long Island suburb of New York City, were on Aer Lingus 105, a flight bound from Dublin to New York that was diverted … [Read more...] about A Warm Irish Welcome in Newfoundland
Bill Butler
Firefighter Bill Butler is very grateful to be alive. He and five colleagues from Ladder 6, Engine 9, were in the North Tower helping to rescue a Port Authority worker named Josephine Harris when the building collapsed around them. Miraculously, the part of the stairwell that they were in remained intact and they survived though others above and below them perished. When the … [Read more...] about Bill Butler
Arlene Howard: A Mother’s Love
Arlene Howard presented a very moving picture when she pressed her son George's New York Port Authority Police Department shield into the hand of President George W. Bush. The 77-year-old's son had died helping to rescue victims of the September 11 attacks, and President Bush was well aware of the honor behind the gesture. After thanking her, he whispered to her, "We'll get … [Read more...] about Arlene Howard: A Mother’s Love
Roger Smyth:
NYC 911 Paramedic
Belfast native Roger Smyth moved to the U.S. five years ago and for the last three and a half years has worked at New York University Hospital's downtown location on Gold and Beekman Streets, a few blocks from the World Trade Center.
At about 8:50 on the morning of September 11, Smyth was at home in Park Slope, Brooklyn, when a friend called to tell him that a plane had struck … [Read more...] about Roger Smyth:
NYC 911 Paramedic
Father Christopher Keenan:
Fire Department Chaplain
Fr. Christopher Keenan, a Franciscan priest whose parents came from Co. Galway and Co. Roscommon, has been assigned the difficult task of replacing the much loved Fr. Mychal Judge as chaplain of the Fire Department. Fr. Judge, a fellow Franciscan and a friend of Fr. Keenan's for 38 years, was killed on September 11 giving last rites to Fire Chief Bill Feehan. In his role as … [Read more...] about Father Christopher Keenan:
Fire Department Chaplain