Thinking Out Loud

Reflection on September 11, 2001, by Stephen Dutton '08

Stephen Dutton is a member of the class of 2008. His uncle was the co-pilot of flight 11, the first plane to crash into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001

Everyone remembers where they were on September 11th, 2001; everyone remembers where they were when they heard the heart breaking news, where they heard about the attacks. Four planes went down that day. The first plane to be hijacked and taken down hit the north tower of the World Trade Center in New York City - American Airlines Flight 11.

Thomas F. McGuinness Jr. is my uncle, my mother's brother. He attended college where he befriended my dad, they both swam on the Boston University swim team, and they quickly became best friends. My dad married my mom and they had me; they made my Uncle Tom my godfather. My uncle joined the Navy after college where he learned to fly fighter jets and later retired to fly commercially for American Airlines and lived locally with his beautiful family. He was the co-pilot of Flight 11.

I was in chemistry class; I was a sophomore in high school. My principal announced over the loud speaker that something terrible had happened in New York and that we should standby for further instruction. Soon they brought us to a room where we could see what was happening on television. During the last class of the day I was instructed by my teacher that I had a phone call. It was my mother - she wanted to remind me to come straight home after school and I obeyed. Walking down my street towards my h ouse I was intercepted by my mother in her car; she was on her way to pick up my younger brother from school. That is when she told me...

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