Those alive to witness the events of Sept. 11 still clearly recall the minutest of details, of what they were doing when tragedy struck. We all know exactly where we were, even today.
“Initially, I did not know what was happening—it was like a bad dream,” Larry Nelson, former assistant dean of international programs for CALS , said.
Nelson said it was like any other day—he was sitting in his office, working.
“Piles of paper that needed working on were lying near a small, never-used TV. The silence was interrupted by my secretary, who ran into my office and said something big was going on. She suggested I turn on the TV. She had got a call from a family member. I saw the towers go.”
For the first time, Nelson turned on his office TV to witness the devastation. Confusion continued to prevail.
“I saw people running in the streets, running down the stairways. I saw thick smoke everywhere. Although we were fortunate to be close to a TV, we weren’t sure how serious the incident was. It took us a day or two for the sinking in.”
Nelson received his doctorate in 1961 and has been with N.C . State since 1964. He has lived through several incidents.
“During one visit to Hawaii, I crossed paths with John F. Kennedy. I saw Air force One at the airport. He was assassinated a day later. When you live a long time, you see a lot of things.”
Thomas Stafford, vice chancellor for Student Affairs, was in the middle of an Executive Officers Meeting with the chancellor on the seemingly normal day.
“It’s a regular staff meeting that had begun at 9:00 a.m . We were a good while into the meeting,” Stafford said. “At exactly 9:45 a.m ., Charlie Leffler , vice chancellor for Finance and Business, broke into the room excited. He announced ‘planes crashed into the Pentagon.’ There was nothing about World Trade Center.”
The meeting was soon adjourned, and everyone returned to their offices.
“I put on the news and tried to learn what was going on,” Stafford said. “It was as the day unfolded that I realized what had transpired. Everyone on campus was in a state of shock. It took me a full day for the reality, the magnitude of the event to sink in.”
Stafford has retained the sheet of paper for 10 years he was taking notes on during the meeting when the news broke. The sheet has ‘GOM-9-11-01′ written on the top left. The paper has scribbles of ‘houses-scholars-next week. housing,’ perhaps points being discussed at the meeting. On the top right corner, it reads: “9:45 C. Leffler Planes crash into Pentagon.”
“This sheet,” Stafford said, “is a chilling reminder to me as to what happened that day. It is a really historical day that I will always remember.”
Stafford keeps the sheet, along with other personal documents, that are special to him in the top drawer of his desk.
Darryl Lynn Overby , stock clerk for University Recreation, always starts his day at 11:00 a.m . at Carmichael Gymnasium. He has been working there for the last 20 years.
He woke up earlier than usual the day of the attacks.
“I was awakened by a call that told me to turn on the TV,” Overby said. “The first thing I saw was the Twin Towers being bombed. I was alarmed and felt remorseful. I tried to get an understanding of what was going on.”
Overby said he prepared to leave for work, still unsure of what had just happened.
“Here at the gym, work continued, but we were all trying to gather what was happening,” Overby said. “The incident is something that I can never forget. But, I have made peace with it. We have to pray for individuals who lost lives that day. We have to pray for their families.”
He said the events of 9/11 were eye-opening.
“I have grown as an individual. I have learned to pay attention to my surroundings.”