By Olena Nicks
This week we mark 24 years since the horrific events of Sept. 11, 2001 — one of America’s darkest days, and the deadliest terror attack in our nation’s history.
With the passage of time, our comprehension of how the world changed that day becomes more developed. So too does the understanding of the tremendous sense of pain and loss we feel each year on this somber anniversary, as New Yorkers and Americans. There is not a single Sept. 11 that passes without reflections on the sacrifices made and the families affected, and I always pause to learn more about the people who lost their lives that day.
As a child, I was sitting in Mr. Esposito’s fourth-grade class in Smith Street Elementary School, in Uniondale, when we learned that two airplanes had been hijacked and crashed into the World Trade Center towers just 25 miles away.
By 10:30 that morning, both towers had collapsed, the Pentagon had been badly damaged by a third hijacked plane, and a fourth aircraft, United Flight 93, had crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after brave passengers overpowered the hijackers and prevented them from completing an aerial assault on the U.S. Capitol.
I will never forget the shock, sadness, fear and uncertainty that my classmates and I felt in that moment, or the face of my teacher, who was trying to comprehend it all and stay as calm as possible for the children in his care. I will always remember the fire trucks, sirens blaring, speeding down Hempstead Turnpike toward Manhattan, filled with volunteer firefighters hoping to do anything they could to save lives. It was beyond overwhelming, and it was heartbreaking.
As I got older, I began to embrace the lessons drawn from America’s response to an unconscionable assault that killed nearly 3,000 innocent victims and has claimed thousands more lives in the 24 years following that fateful day.
In a time of crisis, I saw how people opened their hearts to comfort friends, loved ones and strangers as they collectively grappled with profound loss and uncertainty. They rushed to donate blood, and gave their hard-earned money to relief efforts. Others joined the armed forces and pursued fields and disciplines that they felt could help their country respond and recover.
Our collective response to the attacks demonstrated America’s resilience. It showed the importance of living in the moment and refusing to allow fear to dictate our lives. It proved to the world, and each of us, the awesome power that we have as a nation when we come together and pool our efforts and our compassion behind a worthwhile cause.
Today, as a Nassau County legislator and a firefighter with the Uniondale Fire Department for the past 14 years, the countless acts of selflessness that I witnessed remain a guiding light in my pursuit of public service. They demonstrated the importance of not just appreciating and honoring our first responders, but the moral imperative of caring for them as a society.
Since 2001, more than 5,700 people have died of 9/11-related illnesses, and more than 400 of them were FDNY firefighters. Countless people are still battling debilitating illnesses they developed while toiling at ground zero to save lives and recover victims so that their families could fully grieve and hopefully achieve a measure of closure.
We have a duty as a nation to ensure that every person who rushed toward danger on that day and in the aftermath of the attacks is fully cared for. That’s why we must ensure that the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund remains fully vested, so that anyone who needs medical treatment has access to the resources they not only deserve, but have earned.
Today and each day moving forward, we can call on the lessons of service, courage and compassion to strengthen communities in Nassau County and all across America. By embracing and uplifting each other, we can honor the memory of the thousands of people we lost, and ensure the victims of Sept. 11 are never forgotten.
Olena Nicks, of Uniondale, represents Nassau County’s 2nd Legislative District.
