By Chris Spoons

The images of terrorism striking America are stark and powerful. So, too, are the words of those who experienced it, or lived through its aftermath. Here are a few.



“When the first plane hit there was a God-awful noise and the building was shaking,” said Carole Eipers, experiencing the horror of it in her office three blocks from Ground Zero. Eipers, formerly director of the archdiocesan Office for Catechesis, now is director of catechetics for the publishing house of William H. Sadlier, Inc.

From her second-floor office window, she said she could see “papers … flying like a ticker tape parade and hundreds of people … running down the street.” As the twin towers fell, “everything just went black. Everything was shaking and people were screaming.”

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“What we have taken for granted in the fire service is not standard operating procedure anymore,” said Hoffman Estates Fire Department captain John Mayer who was among those local firefighters who went to New York to help in the aftermath of the attacks.

“There was something calling me to go to New York, not just curiosity, but more like a magnetism,” he said. “I felt helpless sitting here when people needed assistance. That’s what we do.”

“I couldn’t believe the enormity of the situation,” said Jeff Golden, another Hoffman Estates firefighter who made the trip. “It wasn’t just the twin towers, there were dozens of buildings that were off their foundations.”

“From the moment it happened we all wanted to go and help. There was a terrible feeling of loss and hopelessness,” said Jim O’Connell, a paramedic and district field officer with the Chicago Fire Department. O’Connell spent eight hours a day at Ground Zero helping people deal with the psychological aftermath of the events.

Their help was appreciated by FDNY personnel. John Olivero, a firefighter with New York’s Engine Co. 55, wasn’t supposed to start his shift until 6 p.m. that night. When he got to work, equipment from his station was gone. It was later found buried 45 feet under the wreckage. The help from out of town was welcomed. “There were suddenly people from all over the place,” Olivero said. “It was like a common bond, instantly sealed with just a look. It made a world of difference.”

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Several Archdiocese of Chicago priests also went to New York to help after the attacks. Standing at the site where the twin towers should have been was breathtaking and surreal,” said Father Dan Brandt, associate pastor at St. William Parish in Chicago.

Brandt went to New York because he wanted to help in any way he could. “The most valuable ministry was to be present to families as they claimed loved ones,” he said. “Many (victims) people were identified only by serial number or badge number. We’d then be called to do a little prayer service on the street outside the morgue because they wanted to give each person the dignity of their own funeral.”

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“While it was the most devastating thing I’ve seen in my life, it was also beautiful because the people were so welcoming,” O’Connell said. “As they say—where sin abounds, grace abounds even more.”