Heroes of Flight 93 ... "Let's Roll"

The heroes of Flight 93 were ordinary Americans who reacted to extraordinary times. On a hijacked plane heading toward Washington, D.C., and possibly the White House or the Capitol building, and with the knowledge of what had already occurred that morning with the Twin Towers and the Pentagon, the passengers took matters into their own hands.

Ordinary Americans became heroes in their attempt to overtake the Muslum terrorists who had pirated the plane, causing it to crash into the countryside of Pennsylvania.

I have written before of my special connection to Flight 93. Because the plane was thought to be headed toward the White House or Capitol, the passenger stopped further tragedy when they prevented terrorists from carrying out that part of their plan.

My sister, a member of the George W. Bush administration, was working in the White House that day. If that plane had hit as had happened in NYC and Arlington, our family could have been one of the many mourning a lost family member. I will forever be grateful to the men and women of Flight 93 and their families for the heroism and sacrifice made that day.

Flight 93 had heroes on board....

Todd Beamer - "Let's roll!"
The 32-year-old Oracle Corp. account manager from Cranbury, N.J., was believed to have helped lead a passenger attack on Flight 93 hijackers that prevented the jet from reaching its target, possibly the White House. Beamer spoke to a GTE operator on the plane's phone. His final words -- "Are you guys ready? Let's roll!" -- have become a rallying cry for the war against terrorism. Beamer and his wife, Lisa, had two sons. His daughter, Morgan, was born in January of 2002. Beamer played baseball and basketball in college and loved coaching youth sports. President Bush, in an address to the nation, praised Beamer as "an exceptional man." Today, the Todd M. Beamer Foundation aims to help kids deal with trauma and learn how to make choices.

Thomas E. Burnett Jr.
Burnett called his wife, Deena, to tell her about the Flight 93 hijacking and said he and other passengers were "going to do something about it." Burnett, 38, of San Ramon, Calif., was senior vice president and chief operating officer of Thoratec Corp., a medical research and development company. His wife and three daughters moved to Arkansas afterwards to be closer to her parents. The new Thomas Burnett Family Foundation plans to provide endowments for children's bereavement camps and leadership scholarships at selected universities.

Jeremy Glick
Glick called his wife, Lyz, after terrorists took over Flight 93. She patched the call to a 911 dispatcher, who told Glick about earlier attacks in New York. Glick told his wife some passengers had taken a vote, and "We're going to rush the hijackers." Glick, 31, of West Milford, N.J., had been a collegiate judo champion at the University of Rochester. His older sister, Jennifer, is president of Jeremy's Heroes foundation which is devoted to helping people build character through sports. The foundation has supplied sneakers to kids in Chicago and paid for 20 children in Washington to attend a soccer camp.

"There but by the grace of God go I...."

We will never forget.

Originally published 2007.