On the 25th Anniversary of 9/11: The Full Series
I am a proud, lifelong New Yorker. The events of September 11, 2001—the catastrophic assault on the city of my birth, the city I still call home—deeply affected me, as well as my family, friends, and neighbors.
On that date, 2,977 people were murdered in New York City, Washington D.C., and near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Thousands more were injured. As of this writing, nearly 10,000 people have died from 9/11-related illnesses, and of the 400,000 people exposed to Ground Zero toxins, about 81,000 people have certified medical conditions linked to those toxins.
Here’s another statistic, as reported in the New York Times on September 7, 2026: “More than 100 million people in the United States today were not alive on the morning the twin towers fell. Millions more were just learning to walk or starting preschool that day.”
It is fitting, then, to bring together vivid testaments of that fateful day that go beyond those jarring images, played and replayed since.
For more than twenty years, I wrote a series of articles (“Remembering the World Trade Center”) reflecting on the events of 9/11. My annual installments included personal reflections and photo scrapbooks. My project also featured interviews with those impacted by the attack. Some lost loved ones. Some escaped from the Twin Towers. Others worked in buildings around Ground Zero. Some were educators; some were students; and some were firefighters, heroic first responders who risked their lives so that others might live.
What emerges from all these essays is a tapestry of memory and tragedy—and hope.
On this, the twenty-fifth anniversary of that awful late summer day, I have reproduced the entire series on Substack. This is the first time that the series has been assembled chronologically in a comprehensive format. Though many entries carry repetitive references to prior installments, I have left the text largely intact, save for a few minor editorial refinements. In a few instances, I have added a parenthetical comment in brackets. I have also deleted some broken links and updated others.
This series is not about the policies or events that led to 9/11. It is not about the policies or events that emerged from 9/11. On these subjects, I have written much.
Rather, this series is an exercise in remembrance, for as the Pulitzer Prize-winning author Herman Wouk once wrote: “The beginning of the end of war lies in remembrance.”
Sadly, however, memory—like truth—is among the first casualties of war.
My eternal appreciation extends especially to those whom I interviewed: Ray, Patrick, Scott, Charlie, Eddie, Lenny, Tim, Matthew, Sue, Tony, Zack, and Gerard.
I am especially grateful to my late sister, Elizabeth Sciabarra, who put me in touch with many of the people I had the honor of interviewing. This series would not have been possible without her love, guidance, and support.
Be forewarned: This is not light reading.
#NeverForget
The full series can be found on my Substack here. A link to the series can also be found on Medium.
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