The Anniston Star
Page 4G Sunday, September 11, 2011
Nathan Solheim
— I remember —
J.C. Lexow/The Anniston Star/file
A crowd gathers in the Alabama Power Company showroom to watch live coverage of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
T he silence: 9/11 made it all the way to Anniston
S Trent Penny/The Anniston Star/file
A hummingbird gets a drink of water from this feeder in Jacksonville as Old Glory waves in the background on Sept. 12, 2001.
PATRIOTISM Old word takes on new meaning By Laura Camper lcamper@annistonstar.com
Patriotism conjures up images of flags and Fourth of July celebrations, but some locals say it’s more than that — it’s loving and honoring the ideals this country was founded on. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the twin towers in New York, the Pentagon and on the United Airlines Flight 93 airplane forced down into a Pennsylvania field by passengers fighting their hijackers, the outward trappings of patriotism could be seen everywhere. Ken Rollins, member of the local chapter of the Vietnam Veterans of America, remembers that after the attacks, flags were sold out at all the stores in town. “You started seeing them all up and down my street,” he said. “Used to be, they would have flags of lilies and flags of sunflowers and NASCAR flags and now there’s American flags up and down there.” It’s something he credits to being hit in the gut. Before the attacks, Americans couldn’t remember being attacked on their own soil, and the heroic reactions from police, firemen and just ordinary citizens awoke a pride in the country. “I don’t know if it’s patriotism so much as it’s appreciation,” Rollins said. “The people I talk to, and again I’m in the veterans circle so I hear a lot of people talk a little bit different language, but we have a great appreciation for those that wear the uniform.” The Rev. Randall Reeves of First Baptist Church of Saks, which is having a commemorative service on the anniversary at 10 a.m, agreed. The attack brought on a surge of patriotism as well as brought people back to church, but that wasn’t a lasting reaction. “Tragic events seem to bring out a renewed interest in things of the Lord and religion,” he said. “But those are short-lived.” It’s something Reeves has seen many times in his work. The events bring out a need to reach out to others and to bond with people close to them, and the attack also caused a surge of patriotism. April Fausnaught, a local resident and Jacksonville State University student, called it a defensive reaction. “We get wrapped up in our own problems and then we’re surprised,” she said. “It was a wakeup call.”
She and her friend, Danette Toole, were sitting at a table in Java Jolt in Jacksonville doing homework, their books spread across the table. The event was a turning point for the country, they said. Marcelline Barry, who was sharing lunch with her husband, Hubert, at the Hardees in Jacksonville, said it seems like tragic events bring people together. She noticed it after Sept. 11. She noticed it again after the April 27 tornadoes. It reminds people of their vulnerability. “Our shield had been taken away,” Rollins said. “All the police and all the Guard and everything else just couldn’t protect us as we had come to believe.” But it also reminds people of their interconnectedness. Nita Walker of Birmingham stopped to talk while having lunch at the Hardees with her daughter, a student at JSU. People remember where they were when they heard the news, she said, what they were doing because it was so shocking and horrific to them. She said she was at work when she first heard the reports. “One of my coworkers had a small television,” Walker said. “I remember everyone gathered around that small, itty bitty television in amazement and shock.” The attack reminded them that they were all Americans. They all had something in common to protect, and differences in politics, in opinions didn’t seem so important, Walker said. Hubert Barry noted that the vast majority of Americans stood behind the war effort when the war in Iraq began. “They wouldn’t have done that without what happened,” he said. Of course, that feeling went away over the years, as real-life issues intruded on ideals, but that didn’t mean that patriotism had waned, said most of the people interviewed. “Just because we don’t see American flags doesn’t mean it isn’t there,” Toole said. “It’s in our heart,” her friend Fausnaught finished for her. The event may have brought out visible signs of patriotism, but it only magnified what was already there, they said, and the lessons learned will be remembered on this 10th anniversary. “I think everybody will do something in school,” Toole said. “Even on the radio, they’ll say, ‘Let’s take a moment.’ Lord, this’ll never be forgotten.” Contact staff writer Laura Camper at 256-235-3545.
“We get wrapped up in our own problems and then we’re surprised. It was a wake-up call.” — April Fausnaught, Jacksonville State University student
ept. 11, 2001, was my day off. Lying in bed that morning, my thoughts were on a surplus auction at McClellan that day. The idea was to get some cheap Army surplus for my place. I hadn’t turned on the TV or radio because, in the news business, a little silence and stillness can keep you from going crazy. And besides, Mike Mote over on WHMA still hadn’t gotten over the Alabama-UCLA game. The phone started ringing. I knew it was someone from The Star. I didn’t exactly feel like solheim working on my day off, so I let it ring a few times before reluctantly answering. It was The Star’s thenmetro editor Anthony Cook. “Nathan, this is Anthony. Have you heard?” “Heard what?” “A plane just crashed into the World Trade Center,” he said. I could hear in the background that the office was completely alive. At that time of the morning, it wasn’t supposed to be that alive. “So?” “They’re thinking it might be terrorists,” Anthony said. I could hear a twinge of annoyance from a man who possessed the patience of Methuselah. “We’re trying to get everyone we can on the story. It’s all hands on deck,” he said. “Does that mean you want me to come in?” “That would be nice …” Dial tone. I dragged myself out of bed and arrived at the old Star building on 10th Street. I entered the side door directly into the newsroom in time to see the second plane hit the World Trade Center live on TV. I heard several people gasp. I sat down at my desk and looked up to see Anthony standing in
front of me. He gave me my story assignment, but as he walked away he mentioned something that finally made me grasp the importance of the day’s events. “The last extra we did was for the Kennedy assassination.” I looked around and saw many of my colleagues trying to get updates about friends they knew in New York. Some people were crying. Others were silent. Others focused on their jobs. I tried to work on my story but wound up reading the AP Newswire for hours. Later, I found myself staring at a TV screen with John Fleming — then the Editorial Page editor. “You know,” he said, “Don’t go jumping to conclusions about who did this.” His point was that there could be several perpetrators. People forget Oklahoma City was only six years prior. But even then, I thought it had to be terrorists. They’d bombed the World Trade Center before. I fielded several calls from people asking if the Army was going to reopen Fort McClellan. I got an answer — probably from someone at the Joint Powers Authority — and started telling callers it wasn’t going to happen. There were questions about the Anniston Army Depot and the security of the chemical weapons stored there. I chased down a lot of rumors that day. Some time that afternoon, I walked outside and looked toward 10th Street. There wasn’t any traffic. I looked over at the Alabama Power property next door and saw no activity. I don’t remember what I wrote about or if it made the Extra edition, but I do remember the silence — the eerie stillness of it all — and the realization that 9/11 made it all the way to Anniston. Nathan Solheim worked at The Star from 2000-2005. He’s now the managing editor of DU Today, the University of Denver’s online news website.
Calhoun County Commission... Remembering 911
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