A 21-foot, 17,000-pound steel beam recovered from the World Trade Center’s South Tower stood just feet from Frank Siller on Tuesday. Not much farther behind him loomed the White House, the backdrop for his speech.
Over each of Frank’s shoulders, an American flag flew from a fire truck’s raised ladder. Ringing the Ellipse were photographs of the first responders who lost their lives Sept. 11, 2001.
Frank, the founder and CEO of the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, was there to introduce the president at the “Steel Across America” event — a nationwide tour marking the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
The crowd was packed with military personnel and first responders, some of whom had been there that day, 25 years ago.
Frank lost his youngest brother, a firefighter, in the attacks. He took the stage to introduce the president, but first he told his own story about the tragedy his family suffered on 9/11.
He took us back to the beginning. Both his parents had died within a short time of each other, leaving his little brother, still just a kid, an orphan.
Stephen grew up to become a New York City firefighter. He was heading home from his shift to meet his brothers for a round of golf when the first plane hit the World Trade Center’s North Tower.
In an instant, Stephen turned his truck around, strapped on 60 pounds of gear and rushed toward the towers.
