Frank Ufert World Trade Center Survivor

 

The photo above depicts the hard hat given to my late father, Frank Ufert, by his final employer, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), of the U.S. Department of Labor, following the 9-11 Tragedy. All of us in the United States and throughout the globe have personal recollections of that world-changing day. However, only a few of us, and by "few," I mean tens of thousands out of billions of humans on Earth, lost someone or were, or knew, a survivor to whom we were related or were and are connected first-hand. My dad was one of those survivors.

The Death of Osama Bin-Laden: Reflections from a Great Writer and from Me

A brilliantly-written article by Chris Hedges, who was, "nearly two decades a foreign correspondent for 'The New York Times'," on CommonDreams.org (Hedges,  "made these remarks about Osama bin Laden’s death at a Truthdig fundraising event in Los Angeles on Sunday evening"):

On Osama Bin Laden’s Death | Common Dreams

My own (Karl Ufert's) thoughts about the announcement of the death of Osama Bin-Laden--I posted an abridged version of the following to Facebook last night, after the President spoke:

9-11 Remembered In Tribute to My Late Father

 

(My late father, Frank Ufert, in Korea, circa 1953, in his United States Armed Forces/Military Police uniform)

We didn't lose my father, Frank Ufert, on 9-11; he passed away approximately one month ago (July 24, 2009). He was, however, directly affected by the tragedy--he was what is now called a "9-11 Survivor."

9-11 - Never Forget

I'm no reactionary, "nationalistic" zealot. I do, however, honor the memory of 9-11. My father is a survivor of the event: he was at work that day, in his office in 6 World Trade Center. He returned to work (for OSHA) after suffering a debilitating stroke the year prior which left him paralyzed on one side. Though he went back to work in a wheelchair and would not have been able to escape his office on that day without help, his colleagues wheeled him out of the office in time to be safe.

I honor the memory of tragically lost lives and of the true heroism of REAL PEOPLE (not opportunistic politicians) who aided the sick, wounded, etc. oft to their own detriment. That horrible event -- which, being a lifelong Manhattanite, I witnessed first-hand -- will forever haunt me and my fellow New Yorkers in a way those who did not live here when it happened can never understand.