Being so close to NYC, it weighs very heavily here.
I was actually glad that it rained here on 9/11. I didn't want it to be that same beautifully blue cloudless sky on the 10th anniversary. That day was so perfect, until the carnage began.
Of the 2,996 victims from 9/11 itself, 1,763 were from NY, and 714 were from NJ.
Most of the towns in my area lost several people that day. Amoung our lost: Two dads from our school, who both worked at WTC. One dad was the then-president of the Board of Ed. The new gym, which he was instrumental in designing, was dedicated to his memory. [I see his widow all the time at PTA meetings and at church. Her children and my children are in successive grades.] A couple from our church was heading out on a mission on United Flight 175, which flew into the WTC South Tower. My friend, an usher at our church, lost his son at WTC. The landlords of the house we were renting while our house was being renovated, lost their nephew. A firefighter from our town, who had recently joined the NYFD, was off-duty and on the phone with his sister when the planes struck. His last words were that he was "going to help his brothers."
Everybody around here knows somebody who died that day. Many know several.
Some of the lesser-known victims include the many first-responders, and even office workers who are now suffering serious health problems. One friend's husband (WTC?) was affected by the toxins in the air. He started having health problems a several years ago. He has had some strokes that have weakened his heart and lungs. He is now is a long-care facility and she is raising their kids alone.
Gadget Guy was scheduled to fly out of Newark to San Franscico on 9/11/2001, the same flight as United Airlines Flight 93 (from Newark to San Francisco), just later in the day. I was so lucky that his company wanted a half-day of work out of him before he went to that trade show. Otherwise, I could have easily been one of the 9/11 widows. {shudder} Mominator
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