Randy Weis, Executive Director, NEFCA on What it was like to be 25 miles from the World Trade Center on that day

“It was just before 9am on 9/11 when my wife called and asked if we still had a TV in the office as a small plane had hit the World Trade Center.  I had a TV that was used for training purposes, but I only had a remote antenna and no cable access.  After turning on the TV, we saw the tower with smoke coming out of all sides, and while everyone in the office was gathering around the TV, we watched the second plane hit.  We knew we were under attack then and one of our employees whose son was in day care, quickly left to go pick him up as she thought if the world was coming to an end, she wanted to be with her son.  Other employees were frozen watching the horror unfold.

As we were digesting this, we checked to make sure we had no workers that day in the towers, and we called the homes of every employee to make sure they and their families were safe.  This same day we had a visitor from Pittsburgh in our office who had flown in the night before, and we suggested he call a rent a car company, and plan on driving back to Pittsburgh from NY.

We as a company were fortunate that all of our and their immediate families were safe.

In the days that followed, our business was put on hold as NYC was in chaos.  

Later one, we helped small businesses in the World Trade Center zone get cleaned up, put in new flooring, and helped in fundraising for a Port Authority Police officer who had died, and was a cousin of one of our employees.”

Jared Colombo, President of NEFCA

”I was in High School at the time, and I can still remember being in a College Prep class when news was very slowly starting to filter in.  I think at that time, we thought it was a horrible accident, but as we left 1^st period and moved onto second, I remember it became apparent it wasn’t an accident.  TVs were rolled into classrooms and we tried to get whatever news coverage we could.  It was a terrible day and I can vividly remember how emotional it was.  I think as the day went on, more and more news would come out and it was surreal. 

The stories that came out and continue to be told of the heroics of the first responders are so incredibly moving.  My personal favorite is the story of the man with the red bandana.  It’s frequently told and it’s so amazingly heroic and moving.

Here’s a link if you haven’t heard it, it’s well worth reading…”

https://www.maninredbandana.com/

Art by Peggy Weis

9/11 in Memoriam

“9/11 was an event significant to horrific proportions. As for so many, it created a mix of emotions, intense and confusing – fear, anger, helplessness, horror – and also like so many, I didn’t know what to do with it all.  There was this terrible feeling of impotence and frustration, wanting to do something helpful, perhaps significant to combat the senselessness of it all.  

So as an artist, I did what I do.  I began immediately creating these pieces as the images of that day started to immerge in newspapers and magazines.  It did help me cope with those horrible days that followed.  In the process there was always the hope that the work would not just ease my personal pain and frustration, but also honor those who lost their lives and the heroes of 9/11.”