College Football Ping.
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Posted on 09/11/2006 6:00:05 PM PDT by MikefromOhio
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- The acrid, awful, haunting smell of charred flesh still returns sometimes, without warning.
They're phantom smells, five years old, but that doesn't make them any less real to Mark Dodge. Same with the nightmares, which are less frequent now but no less jarring.
"Certain nightmares will always probably be there," Dodge said.
When you have been where Mark Dodge has been, seen what he has seen, smelled what he has smelled, you don't forget. When you have bagged incinerated bodies and carried them to a morgue truck, the experience lingers. When you have spent days raking through piles of debris for human remains -- sifting out the teeth and bones -- it stays with you.
"I don't think raking will ever be the same for him," said Dodge's mom, Toni Inserra.
On Sept. 11, 2001, 20-year-old Mark Dodge was at the Pentagon when it was struck by the hijacked American Airlines Flight 77. Shortly thereafter, Dodge's 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment was part of the response team.
"I'm sad my son had to go through that," Inserra said. "I'm sad anyone had to go through that. At 20, we all take a lot for granted. I don't think he takes anything for granted now."
That's the perspective gained from going through hell. Monday, on the fifth anniversary of that tragedy, Mark Dodge believes he is a better man because of it. A stronger man. A more appreciative man.
(Excerpt) Read more at sports.espn.go.com ...
Mark Dodge is a great addition to the Fightin' Texas Aggies. His maturity and leadership is much needed in the locker room. The rest of the team really looks up to him.
yep
I'm sure his coach is absolutely thrilled to have someone as mature as that on his team. Good character can really strengthen a football team.
Two friends of mine (both on Texas Task Force 1, a quick response group of Texas firefighters that go to disaster sites) pulled duty at the World Trade Center. One of them developed pneumonia related to the dust he inhaled. Doctors told him it would never go away, and he would probably develop cancer within five years. The other has started having balance problems related to some kind of inner ear problem, with no conclusion that I'm aware of that it was related to the WTC. He's been on disability and run out most of his sick leave.
wow...
yeah that concrete dust was some nasty looking stuff there, along with all of the other things floating around in the air as well....
ping
For two of the nicest Aggies I know.....
At 20, we all take a lot for granted.
My father can relate to Mark Dodge. He, like many other soldiers, at 18 landed on Omaha Beach on D-Day and later was in the Battle of The Bulge. Those experiences and Mark Dodge's tend to put things in perspective. Playing football before thousands of people is gravy after what he experienced.
Thanks for the ping!
8<)
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