Diocesan reflections on 9-11

As the nation observes the 25^th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, Lumen Media gathered some reflections from diocesan leaders throughout the Diocese of Sioux City. The contributors shared where they were when they heard about the planes crashing in New York, the Pentagon and rural Pennsylvania as well as what were they thinking at that time.

“I was vacationing in Stratford, Canada with three other priests from the Diocese of Youngstown on Sept. 11, 2001.  Rumors of what was happening were out of control.  None of us had cell phones.  Phone service was spotty at best.  

“I remember worrying about everyone but especially for two of my siblings who lived in the DC area. My brother and his wife, both in the Navy, were stationed at the Navy Yards at Anacostia. My sister's in-laws worked at the Pentagon. I felt trapped and isolated. I remember praying desperately for everyone.”

• Bishop John E. Keehner, Diocese of Sioux City  

 

“When 9-11 happened, I was outside mowing the lawn.  Some of the sisters were working in the garden and a couple of us were mowing.  Mother Therese rang the outside bell and came running out to tell us that we were being attacked.  

"We all came in and Mother Therese turned on the TV.  We could see one of the twin towers on fire and then, at that moment, it totally collapsed.  It was surreal.  Did that really just happen?  It was so hard to grasp what we just saw.  

“Oh, those poor people!  I thought of all the people who were killed or possibly still alive.  I thought of the people who were in the plane that crashed into the tower.  I can still see the picture of a woman frantically running from the towers, covered in soot.  I thought of all of the families wondering if their loved ones were coming home.  We prayed and prayed and prayed.” 

• Mother Joseph, mother superior of Carmelites in Sioux City

 

“My first thought when the towers fell was for a close friend who went to college at NYU. I started calling after the first plane hit and I sat by that phone for hours waiting to hear from them. 

"I remember thinking, ‘I wonder how many people are doing exactly what I'm doing now.’ The emotion I felt after fear was anger. I've dealt with that anger, but I think the fear is with me and maybe us today still.”

• Nathan Phillips, counselor at Catholic Charities in Sioux City

 

“On Sept. 11, 2001, I had just recently become pastor of Our Lady of Fatima Parish and School in Lakewood, Colorado. I was in the middle of a school board meeting and the secretary entered the room and said to us, ‘We’re under attack.’ We looked at her and had no idea what she was talking about.

 “I said, ‘What do you mean?’ She then told us that she had just heard on the news that a building was attacked in New York. We immediately stopped the meeting and had a chance to gather more information. As soon as we knew what was happening, we knew we needed to do the one thing we could: pray. 

“We arranged to have the whole school come to the parish church and we prayed the rosary together. At that point, we notified the parents to come pick up their children if they wanted to. I went back to watching the news reports for the rest of the day. It was an unforgettable day full of memories and sadness. I will never forget it. On the Sunday following, it was the center of our attention in all the Masses that we celebrated, praying for peace.”

• Bishop Emeritus R. Walker Nickless

  

“When I heard the news on the radio that morning about a plane hitting a tall building in New York City, I thought what an unfortunate accident it was for that small plane’s pilot to get disoriented among a bunch of skyscrapers. 

"I had a meeting in Boone that morning.  I think we started our meeting, but eventually someone turned on a TV.  I realized that this was going to be my generation’s Pearl Harbor Day for a lifetime memory.   

“I remember the news of how all airports were immediately shut down and that the skies would become empty.  For quite some time, when you did see an unusual sighting of a plane in the sky, you knew it was some type of military plane because it wasn’t going to be a regular airliner or private plane.

“We knew air travel and airport security would never be the same.”
 
           John Steffes, president of Kuemper Catholic Schools in Carroll  

“I was in Rome just having completed a luncheon meeting with one of the Paulist priests who staffed the ‘American’ parish for Americans working or living in Rome.  We were discussing pastoral staff involvement for seminarians for the coming year.  

"The news of the attacks were just being reported.  I returned to the Pontifical American College to gather with faculty and staff to discuss what was happening.  

“Concerns centered around student safety and coordinating our response with Vatican, Italian and U.S. Embassy security officials.  It was to be the opening day of our new formation year.  All was changed to accommodate a new reality.  We gathered for a holy hour in the chapel, shared a meal and supported one another as news became better defined.  I’ll never forget that time and place.”

• Msgr. Kevin McCoy, diocesan vicar general and pastor of Holy Trinity Parish of Webster County

 

“I was in Vietnam on 9-11. I lived with my uncle, a priest. When I got back home from college, my uncle was waiting for me and told me what he watched on TV. He led the rosary to pray for the victims. 

“We were not sure what happened in detail in the beginning. But on the next day we were reported that it was terrorism. “I didn’t understand why these people did horrible things. I felt intense terror, anxiety, and a deep sense of helplessness as the events unfolded. I asked my uncle many questions, ‘why?’ He only responded to me, ‘pray, pray and pray.’ That is what I keep doing for the victims of violence especially those in 9-11.”

• Father Peter Pham, parochial vicar at St. John Paul II Parish and chaplain at Kuemper Catholic Schools in Carroll

  

“I was a seminarian studying in Rome at the North American College and was preparing for my upcoming diaconate ordination.  

“On occasions of major news events, my mother often spoke of remembering exactly where she was when she heard that JFK was killed.  9-11 is that moment for me.  I was in my room when a friend knocked on my door, told me that a plane had hit the World Trade Center and that everyone was gathering in the TV lounge to watch the news reports.  In all honesty, I did not believe the report, but my friend insisted it was true, so I joined him in going to the TV lounge.  We arrived at the lounge just in time to witness the second plane hit the second tower.  

“I was shocked and confused and eventually was devastated when the towers collapsed.  The loss of life, the repeated showing of videos of people jumping to their deaths, the buildings collapsing, all the smoke and debris, the reports of a plane hitting the Pentagon, and another crashing in western Pennsylvania, it was overwhelming. 

“Msgr. Kevin McCoy was the Rector of the North American College at that time and at some point (I don’t remember exactly when it was), he called everyone to the college’s chapel to pray. “ 

• Father Brad Pelzel, diocesan vicar general and pastor of Sioux City Mater Dei Parish

 

“I remember very well where I was on Sept. 11, 2001, when the planes began hitting the towers in New York City.  I had just boarded a plane in Corpus Christi at about 8 a.m. Central Time, flying to Newark (where one of the four planes had just been hijacked).  I had a layover in Newark and then was scheduled to fly to Rome, to return to our houses of formation there in the Subiaco Valley.  

“Only we never left the ground.  We waited and waited, and finally the pilot came on and told us to deplane but to leave our carry-ons on board, as he was sure we’d be taking off later. Yet he did not know what was going on and couldn’t give us any info.  He only knew something was happening, and his instructions were to de-board all passengers.  When we got back inside the airport, everyone was glued to a TV.  One look and I knew we would not be going anywhere.

  “There are lots of thoughts, but one I think about often is how many heroes there were that day.  Ordinary people who did extraordinary things, all the way to giving up their own lives to help save others.  From first responders to everyday people/employees whose very best came out in that moment, they were real heroes that day because they were able to tap into a well of courage within themselves that they probably didn’t know they had. 

“For all the villains we might talk about, they ultimately did not win the day.  The stories we tell from that day are the stories of those who did not think of themselves, or only of themselves, but of what they could do to help others.  That is real love, in action. We may not know what we are really made of till we’re put to the test.  These were admirable human beings who didn’t think twice.  They simply moved and did whatever they could.  We should never forget how many there were that day.  It gives us real hope.”

• Sister Anne Marie Walsh, SOLT, Domus Trinitatis Retreat Center