Reflections on the 23rd Anniversary of September 11th
Herbert M. Chain, MBA, CPA, NACD.DC
Shareholder, CBIZ CPAs P.C., Director, CBIZ Advisory, Retired audit partner, Deloitte. Independent Director/Audit Committee Chair, and professor. NACD and PDA Certified Director. Opinions my own.
Prologue:?As time passes, September 11th has become mere "history" to some, like WWII or any other historical event.?As we approach its 23rd anniversary, it is important to remember it and the lessons we learned on that day and in the aftermath. (Clearly, some have not.)
-----
My Deloitte office was in the World Trade Center (WTC) until the first attack in February 1993. (My office was on the 100th floor, facing the Statue of Liberty. I remember the walk down in the dark and smoke.) We then moved temporarily to our midtown offices on Broadway and 50th Street. Thank goodness, my managing partner decided NOT to move back to the WTC – a gutsy decision based on client and political pressures, but a wise one in retrospect and one that considered the employees of the firm. We moved across West Street to the World Financial Center (now "Brookfield Plaza").
On September 11th, I was in London for a series of meetings. Someone ran into the conference room and said that a plane went into the Trade Center...and had to make the point that she was not kidding, based on our reactions. We spent the next day trying to reach our families, crying and watching CNN. My wife was on the BQE (for those o/s of NY, that’s the Brooklyn Queens Expressway) heading to work and saw the planes hit. My son Brad was in his senior year at Duke University.
I headed off to Zurich for another meeting, since I couldn’t get back home anyhow. I ended up being able to get back to the States on Saturday, but with the “lottery” of air availability, flew into Pittsburgh. Luckily my travel service was able to get me a rental car at Pittsburgh, and I started the long ride back to Queens. I stopped in Pennsylvania for the night, eyes almost closed from fatigue and emotion. On Sunday morning, I crossed the Verrazano Narrows Bridge from Staten Island to Brooklyn and saw the smoke rising from what was the WTC complex. Tears again…pulled off the road until I composed myself.
领英推荐
My office looked RIGHT out on the site, so I saw the clean up and the rise of the new structures and development of the memorial on an almost daily basis. It hit me each and every day what was there, but thankfully, also what has now risen from those (literal) ashes. (We later moved to 30 Rockefeller Plaza and I have since left the firm due to mandatory retirement requirements.) I will again watch the ceremonies, with tears in my eyes.
God bless the victims, the first responders, and those who we have lost since that day. God bless those who protect us here and abroad...and never forget the significance of this day.
Retired Partner at Deloitte & Touche LLP
3 年Thanks for sharing. A day I will never forget
Strategic Planning & Execution | Operations Management | Performance Optimization | Financial Services | Stakeholder Relations | Change Management | Team Building & Development | Financial Analysis
3 年I remember that day and the weeks that followed vividly. From where we lived the smell and the smoke was a daily reminder. So grateful to have taken the train that day as opposed to the bus that dropped me off at WTC. The universe had a different plan for me. I’m thankful each day. Walking back to Queens across the 59th St. bridge was a human experience I will never forget. The unity of every one on that bridge, whether it was on foot or in cars loading up with strangers just to get away, was probably one of the most profound experiences I’ll ever have. Thanks for sharing.
Experienced Executive/Leader, Investment Performance & Analytics
3 年Thank you for sharing, Herb.
Lead Employee Relations business partner who improves engagement while reducing risk
3 年Thank you for sharing. I was in the Westport Deloitte office that day and watched on TV as the second plane hit. I remember looking at the person next to me whom I had never met before as we both immediately grabbed phones to ensure that our WTC building was evacuating and we could start confirming the safety of our employees. We later drove into NYC to become part of a command center to confirm the location of ever employee that lived or worked in NYC. That person whom I had never met before turned out to be a partner and she and I have remained close friends though neither of us are with the firm and haven't been for years. Our friendship is the good that came of that day.