After 9/11 in lower Manhattan, I saw a nation cry. It didn't matter who you were or what you did. Young, old, black, white, rich or poor - the horror touched everyone's soul. And when I close my eyes I can still see the faces and hear the cries and feel the pain.
I will never be the same.
This was not a natural disaster; it didn't have to be. But it happened and I must deal with my anger.
I am a nurse, an emergency services director. It's my job to care for and serve the client. But, I'm also a mom, a grandmother, sister, cousin, friend and it angers me "someone" or "something" hurt us this way.
We're all looking for answers but none will ever justify the mourning of an entire nation. I saw a country pull together in a relief effort so great, it made me proud to be a part of it. Thousands of people came to do whatever possible to aid in any way possible.
This is my Red Cross story.
Sept. 11, 2001, at 9:15 a.m., a call from a disaster services coordinator said we'd been put on alert. The news kept coming - one plane, two planes, hit the towers; the Pentagon hit; a fourth plane went down and then the towers crumbled.
Shock, panic hit our office as it did everywhere. Hundreds of calls coming in, going out.
By 2:30 p.m., five volunteers climbed into our chapter van and headed for the White Plains staging area: Julia Kruger, logistics; Anita Strods, Ed Taesch, mental health; Vivian Cunningham and myself, disaster health.
The only thing we were told was to bring a sleeping bag and get there ASAP.
The next day, three more local volunteers went out: Sandi Lynch, Angel Gonzalaz, mass care; and Lili Maples, mental health.
Only once at the job site did I see Julia and Lily. I thought about them often and hoped they were OK, but I believed in their training and trusted they could do the job.
What every person on this relief effort had to know were their limitations. It was an extremely emotional job, unlike any other.
My first few hours I worked as a nurse, processing 75 volunteers in two hours. The next few hours, I was at the Manhattan Red Cross Chapter, processing more people. Then I moved to the "compassion center" as an administrative manager where I spent the next few days.
This was a place where families gave detailed descriptions of the missing. DNA testing was done there. Thousands came to grieve together.
People from all walks of life came to show and give support. We worked with police, the FBI, crime-victims board, the mayor's office, military, many organizations that provide disaster support.
Days were endless. Sleep was rare. And, so it goes on. The stories are many, but these pages are few and I, too, must have time to heal.
Thank you to all volunteers, here at home, in New York and all over America.
Ms. McLean is the former Cayuga County Red Cross Emergency Services director. She begins her new position as Adirondack-Saratoga Red Cross Chapter
Emergency Services director Sept. 22.
This was not a natural disaster; it didn't have to be. But it happened and I must deal with my anger.
I am a nurse, an emergency services director. It's my job to care for and serve the client. But, I'm also a mom, a grandmother, sister, cousin, friend and it angers me "someone" or "something" hurt us this way.
We're all looking for answers but none will ever justify the mourning of an entire nation. I saw a country pull together in a relief effort so great, it made me proud to be a part of it. Thousands of people came to do whatever possible to aid in any way possible.
This is my Red Cross story.
Sept. 11, 2001, at 9:15 a.m., a call from a disaster services coordinator said we'd been put on alert. The news kept coming - one plane, two planes, hit the towers; the Pentagon hit; a fourth plane went down and then the towers crumbled.
Shock, panic hit our office as it did everywhere. Hundreds of calls coming in, going out.
By 2:30 p.m., five volunteers climbed into our chapter van and headed for the White Plains staging area: Julia Kruger, logistics; Anita Strods, Ed Taesch, mental health; Vivian Cunningham and myself, disaster health.
The only thing we were told was to bring a sleeping bag and get there ASAP.
The next day, three more local volunteers went out: Sandi Lynch, Angel Gonzalaz, mass care; and Lili Maples, mental health.
Only once at the job site did I see Julia and Lily. I thought about them often and hoped they were OK, but I believed in their training and trusted they could do the job.
What every person on this relief effort had to know were their limitations. It was an extremely emotional job, unlike any other.
My first few hours I worked as a nurse, processing 75 volunteers in two hours. The next few hours, I was at the Manhattan Red Cross Chapter, processing more people. Then I moved to the "compassion center" as an administrative manager where I spent the next few days.
This was a place where families gave detailed descriptions of the missing. DNA testing was done there. Thousands came to grieve together.
People from all walks of life came to show and give support. We worked with police, the FBI, crime-victims board, the mayor's office, military, many organizations that provide disaster support.
Days were endless. Sleep was rare. And, so it goes on. The stories are many, but these pages are few and I, too, must have time to heal.
Thank you to all volunteers, here at home, in New York and all over America.
Ms. McLean is the former Cayuga County Red Cross Emergency Services director. She begins her new position as Adirondack-Saratoga Red Cross Chapter
Emergency Services director Sept. 22.
The Citizens' Say
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