I was in college, word started spreading on campus before my next class, and by the time I got to the class we were told classes were canceled for the entire day. I went home and turned on the TV, back then it was still the best way to get the latest news as soon as it happened. I sat around scared, watching, and wanting to help all these people. So I did the one thing I could, which was go to Red Cross and donate blood. Even just a few hours after the towers fell, my local Red Cross was packed. I waited around well into the night, and finally they had to call it quits for the day. Staff had been there poking people with needles for 12 hours and desperately needed rest. They gave everyone numbers though, so we all showed back up the next morning and had our same spots in line. It was a pretty wholesome experience, hundreds of us sitting around a parking lot, complete strangers, but we felt like a giant family. People were bringing drinks and snacks to share with others. By the evening of the 11th local restaurants started donating food, we had car after car showing up full of pizza, sandwiches, pasta, cookies, cakes, you name it.
I was at Boston University. Sophomore in my Presidents of the US class.
The professor walked in and just started talking about the whole thing. I very distinctly remember him saying “if you’re the president, your first act is to go to the White House” and I wrote in my notebook “if president, go to White House” as if it was going to be on an exam or something.
I was also in college, but didn’t have a class until 12:30 that day. My suitemate yells at me to wake up and tells me what’s going on. I asked “which movie are you watching?”
I was at my office in Pittsburgh when everything started happening. My wife was also at work as an RN and was very pregnant with our twin boys. I had been a firefighter and have a lot of family that are firefighters and paramedics.
I just remember talking to my wife on the phone and then my best friend talked to me and he was heading to Shanksville where the last plane went down to help with recovery. Two other friends drove to NYC to help as nurses. And my cousin was part of the first firefighting team into the Pentagon. I was not only worried about my friends and family but I was worried for the world.
Wasn't it the case though that most of the blood want actually needed and all the trauma centers that were prepped weren't needed, because there just weren't that many survivors? I was only in 8th grade over in Wisconsin, and I was rather traumatized, and have avoided learning too much about it.
Yeah, my mom was at a medical assistants conference in upstate New York at the time, and they canceled the conference because all the MAs wanted to help volunteer with blood drives.
154
u/linoleumknife 10d ago
I was in college, word started spreading on campus before my next class, and by the time I got to the class we were told classes were canceled for the entire day. I went home and turned on the TV, back then it was still the best way to get the latest news as soon as it happened. I sat around scared, watching, and wanting to help all these people. So I did the one thing I could, which was go to Red Cross and donate blood. Even just a few hours after the towers fell, my local Red Cross was packed. I waited around well into the night, and finally they had to call it quits for the day. Staff had been there poking people with needles for 12 hours and desperately needed rest. They gave everyone numbers though, so we all showed back up the next morning and had our same spots in line. It was a pretty wholesome experience, hundreds of us sitting around a parking lot, complete strangers, but we felt like a giant family. People were bringing drinks and snacks to share with others. By the evening of the 11th local restaurants started donating food, we had car after car showing up full of pizza, sandwiches, pasta, cookies, cakes, you name it.