 America's 911 Ride 2004 thanks to WHYY-TV Wilmington and Don Francisco Please download the 1 MG realvideo file and play it off your hard drive. From the video:
 photo John Stachowski Don Francisco, editor of the piece rode the ride for the second time this year. His son James (also pictured above from the realvideo) rode this ride as his first major group ride on a brand new bike. Don writes: "This shot was taken Thursday before we left for Somerset. My wife, Joyce, and I are on the right with the reflective vests and our son James, is behind me with the bright blue jacket on. My brother was away from his office at the Pentagon on 9-11. The office my brother would have been in was destroyed. He came back to work at 230am to help sort things out. Among the work my brother did that day was to see that at least one victim was given a promotion dated earlier than the attack so the victim's family would be better provided for, and then he retired. So I ride because I am thankful my brother had not been moved back to his own office, and to honor those he worked with. Joyce is from Brooklyn. We spent much time in Brooklyn before we were married and then she moved to be with me in Delaware. We still have family in the city. One niece watched the second tower fall from the 59th Street Bridge as she walked home to Queens from her financial services job that day. She lost friends at the WTC and moved to South Carolina because after the attack she was always afraid. Our cousin stayed and lives on 9th Street. We heard about the attack after we got to work in Delaware. It took a while to sink in. I feel the hurt others are experiencing almost as if it is my own. We'd been away from The City for so long Joyce thought the attack would not get to her too much. After a while she went to one of the counselors her employer provided. They discovered she was upset because it was her home town, it was closer than she'd thought. We ride partly because we are still New Yorkers, only we’re a bit misplaced. We did not know anyone personally at any site. The almost overwhelming agony of all the folks that were somehow involved has very much involved us and still causes pain. So we don't ride for any one but for every one. For those that have no one riding for them, we are riding for them. "
comments from Paul Dougherty and his wife, they are both EMTs. They led us from Mike's to Gettysburg on our way to Somerset." THANK YOU Don and Charlie and thank you WHYY TV Wilmington for sending Charlie on an overtime day!!! |
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