The Day Before 9/11
September 11, 2001 as of this writing, is just one week away from its 10th anniversary. There are historic milestones so powerful that recall many years later is as fresh as yesterday.
What about the day
before? That memory is not usually as fresh. What were you doing the
day before 9/11 Monday September 10th 2001?
I was at the Parachute Center in Acampo, Ca. I was helping run parachutes out to two skydivers who had a goal of making 60 jumps in one day. Jumping for the kids of Children's Hospital Oakland was organized by skydiver John Agnos who later disgraced himself by getting hung up on guy wires in an October 2005 B.A.S.E. jump from an antenna. ( http://www.escalonfire.com/jumper.html )
But John's heart was in the right place on September 10th 2001 along with Ken Bracken. The pair averaged a jump every eight minutes from 2,500 feet to achieve the goal.
In jubilation the last jump of the day was a celebration by John, Ken, and those who helped make the event possible. 8 of us joined John and Ken for a 10 way formation smoke jump.
From Parachutist Magazine
pg. 50 Nov. 2001
I am at the lower right corner of the image.
The event realized $7,000 for the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit of Children's Hospital Oakland. Obviously this event was overshadowed by the coming tragedy of 9/11 and soon forgotten.