WTC 9 to paralyzed pal: 'You're coming with us'

Newark Star Ledger ^ | 10/16/01 | WAYNE WOOLLEY

[M. Thatcher]

I tried to find this on the Star-Ledger site, even paying for their archive search, and nothing came up. Unfortunately, unless I can find the original, there's not much I can do with this wonderful story...

[Common Tator]

Did you ever notice that true heroes never ever think they are heroes. They always point out other people whom they regard as heroes.

The don't think they are Heroes. They never think the reason they did it was heroic at all. In this case they did it because if they got out alive and he died they could never forgive themselves for abandoning him. They think that keeps them from being heros. They didn't do it for him, they did it so they could live with themselves. They don't understand that is why all heros are heros. It is the one thing that separates the worthless people from the very, very, valuable people.

You can interview a thousand heroes and it is always the same. In war some lowly enlisted man will save a company of men from certain death. He will say I thought I could take that machine gun nest out. If it wasn't taken out most of the comapny would die. I could not live with myself if I didnt't try.

Mark Twain said man is the only animal with a conscience .. and the only one that needs one. In a terribly bad situation, never look for the big, brave and strong. They often will look out for themselves first. They are not likley to help you until you don't need it. Look for someone with a strong conscience. Even a very weak person with a big conscience will always do the heroic thing. It is what all heroes are made of.

[stands2reason]

Thanks, Pokey. Wow, what an incredible story!

[stands2reason]

Amen!

[Amelia]

Thanks, Pokey78! :)

[JamesWilson]

Thanks for the ping, Pokey!

[facedown]

Bump it back up the board.

[facedown]

ping

[kayak]

Well said, CT!!!

[pgkdan]

Thanks for posting this. We hear the word "hero" bandied about all the time these days...often meaninglessly. If anyone wants toknow what real heroism is they should read this story. God Bless these heroes.

[Miss Marple]

Well said, indeed! Thank you.

[Brian Allen]

Pre-Easternization/Emasculation/Feminization American Men! [And some who've slipped by the cracks]

[Lorena]

John, 15:12 ~ This is My commandment: that you love one another [just] as I have loved you.
v.13 ~ No one has greater love [no one has shown stronger affection] than to lay down (give up) his own life for his friends. (Amplified Bible)
Pokey, thanks so much for the ping. I am touched to read of such inspiring heroism. Although no one ended up losing their life, those fine co-workers put trying to help their friend ahead of their own safety and certainly knew that they were laying their lives on the line for him. What a blessing that all were spared. Wonderful post, Incorrigible. Thank you.

[Sir Gawain]

The Real Heroes Are Dead: A love story. [Colonel Rick Rescorla; MUST READ]

[Lorena]

Beautifully said.

[headsonpikes]

Thanks. Inspiring. ;^)

[headsonpikes]

Eloquent...and true. Thanks for posting. ;^)

[Issaquahking]

Must agree. I could only offer that heros are those that have the conviction to follow God's lead without question. That they are live hero's is all the better, plus we get to share this great country with people like this.

[GUIDO]

Oh my gosh, what a story, and I am so glad I was able to hear about this. These people need to be invited to the Whitehouse or something. This is what Jesus is all about, and I pray that in the same situation the Lord helps me to act like these people did. Thank you for sharing this with all of us here on freerepublic.

[Incorrigible]

Unfortunately NJO.Com re-architected their whole site earlier this year.  Previously the links were valid in perpetuity but this is the wild web world we live in.

This is why having complete articles on FreeRepublic is so important in so many ways.

[Joan912]

A truly great post and another example that Americans are the most charitable people in the world.

Thanks for the ping, baby!

[pax_et_bonum]

Thanks for the ping!

[Incorrigible]

Bump

[Jerry_M]

BUMPED right back to the top so that many more can see it.

[bvw]

I watched the movie Midway last night ... how squadron after squadron of young men in lightly defended tordepdo and dive bombers went down in storms of flak, but managed to break the Jap Navy, taking out four carriers.

America doesn't lack for every-day heroes. But we do suffer bureaucrats overmuch.

In the wreck of the Twin Towers, hundreds of thousands of new non-accountable Federal Civil Servants have been and are being hired, and all to naught in comparison to what everyday folks do to preserve our Nation. And day-in-day-out they burden us with taxes and drag us through ineffective, ridiculous and demeaning searches at the airport.

We can not let that massive outburst of expensive, ineffective and non-accoutable bureaucracy be the legacy of the real heroes of 9/11.

It is to *us*, private industry, local police, individuals that the upkeep of domestic security is best and properly due -- and the *only* effective way. Rather than inflating the Federal Behemoth further, we must re-direct our efforts into shoring up and providing communications between the real men and women in this Nation.

[timestax]

Story must NOT be forgotten!

[Incorrigible]

Thanks for the bump. I agree!

[timestax]

bump

[timestax]

bttt

[Incorrigible]

Bump

[Incorrigible]

Remember the World Trade Center

[bondjamesbond]

I remember reading this story at the time. It was one of a thousand such stories. We were all so overwhelmed. Thank you for bringing this one forward today, to remind us.

[Stentor]

Bump.

[FixitGuy]

Just...WOW!

another bump

[wtc911]

Abruzzo is a quadriplegic, and in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, it took a group of co- workers and emergency workers six hellish hours to carry him to safety.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

In 93 I was crossing Liberty Street to a lunch meeting with a client who worked in 1 WTC. When the bomb went off I thought it was a transformer down in the PATH tubes (we all thought so). I went back to my office a couple of blocks away.

It took my client over three hours to get to the street, most of that time he was struggling to move his 240 pounds on a 5'7" diabetic frame down smokey stairs. He made it but never went back to work and died just three months later after the third or fourth heart attack.

A lot of folks who survived 93 ran out of luck eight years later.