09/11/2026
September 11, 2001.
I was a 19-year-old single mom of two little boys.
That morning, I woke up before my kids, poured myself a cup of coffee, and sat down to enjoy a few quiet moments before they got up. I turned on the TV—and saw something I couldn’t understand.
At first, I thought it was a movie.
I remember flipping through the channels, trying to figure out what I was watching. But every channel showed the same unimaginable images.
And then I realized it was real.
I sat there watching in disbelief as our country was attacked. I remember the sorrow. The fear. The helplessness. That overwhelming feeling that I needed to do something, while having absolutely no idea what I could possibly do.
I was 19 years old. I was a mom. I had two little boys depending on me.
That morning, I took them to McDonald’s for breakfast. Maybe I was trying to give them a little bit of normal in a world that suddenly felt anything but normal.
I remember sitting there watching my boys eat and play, looking at their little faces and thinking about what kind of world they were going to grow up in.
And somewhere in that moment, something inside me changed.
I realized I didn't want to just sit by feeling helpless.
I wanted to do something. I wanted to serve. I wanted to make a difference.
That was the day I made the decision to sign up for the United States Army.
September 11 changed our country forever. It changed families forever. It took thousands of innocent lives and created wounds that 25 years later still haven't completely healed.
But it also changed the direction of my life.
That 19-year-old girl sitting in McDonald’s watching her two little boys could never have known how much that single morning would shape the woman she would become.
So much of who I am today—the strength I found, the lessons I learned, my love for this country, my desire to serve and help others—can be traced back to a morning none of us will ever forget.
Twenty-five years later, I can still remember exactly how it felt.
I remember where I was.
I remember what I was doing.
And I remember realizing that sometimes the moments that make us feel the most helpless can also become the moments that call us to stand up and do something.
Today, I remember the 2,977 lives taken that day.
I remember the firefighters, police officers, EMTs, military members, first responders and ordinary Americans who ran toward danger when everyone else was trying to escape it.
I remember the families whose lives were forever changed.
And I remember a country that, in the middle of unimaginable heartbreak, came together.
September 11, 2001 — September 11, 2026
25 years later.
Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day?
Never forget. 🇺🇸
