My 9/11

Everyone has a story, here is mine.

September 11, 2001 started the same way so many other days started for me. I was up at 4:30 a.m. getting ready to head into work at a radio station in Poughkeepsie. I was doing my first real morning radio show on a station called "Rhythm 94.3" which played throwback songs from the 60's and 70's(it was like jammin oldies, LOL).

The show started like any other, that was until around 8:50 a.m. when the news director of the station, Dawn Spicer came running into my studio saying that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. She handed me a printed out story that read something like, "small plane crashed into the North tower of the world trade center."

At first I thought that it was just a simple accident and even went on the air and read the story as if it was just that an accident. Boy was I wrong.

After reading the story on the air, I went down to the news room where there was a TV. I stood there with a few coworkers watching the live feed of what was going on and that's when the second plane struck the south tower at 9:03 a.m.

We all just stood there in disbelief, like did that really just happen? After I collected myself I ran back to my studio and jumped on the air to pass along the awful news that we were under attack. I still can't remember exactly what I said on the air but one thing I will never forget is the feeling I had in the pit of my stomach. The feeling that I thought the world was ending.

I had a good friend of mine at the time, John who worked in the south tower and I knew he was at work. Was he OK? I tried frantically to call him and couldn't get through as at that time all the circuits were busy and no calls would go through. After what felt like hours, I eventually go a hold of his wife Christine and when she answered the phone, the fear of the unknown sound in her voice still makes me tear up today. Anyway she told me that John was trying to get back to their apartment in Brooklyn and she would let me know when he got there. He did make it home, as he told me later he ran from ground zero all the way to Greenpoint Brooklyn. Thank god he made it!

So many other didn't make it home that awful day and as I said on the air today, the rest of that day was such a blur that I can't recall everything else that took place but I do remember going outside and noticing how absolutely gorgeous the sky looked that day. It was so blue without a cloud in the sky.

I also remember driving home to Kingston and for the first time in a long time I drove straight to St Josephs church to light a candle and saying to someone, that the world will never be the same again. Words I wish weren't true.

Thank you for letting me share my memory with you and please lets all stand together and NEVER FORGET those who were lost on 9-11-2001.

Listen to the Wakin' Up With CJ and Jess Show weekday mornings from 6AM to 10AM on The Wolf. Stream us live through the website, Alexa-enabled device, Google Home or The Wolf mobile app.