Dear Fellow Rotarians,

We at the Booneville Rotary Club in Booneville, MS are shocked and
dismayed at the tragic events that occurred this morning in your great
city.  We would like to help anyway possible.  Please let us know how we
can may assist, either monetarily and/or through other means.  Our
thoughts and prayers are with you and the people in your community
during this time of tragedy. 
 

Dear Matts,

 

I read with great interest your e-mail.  As you may know, I am the Chief Dental Consultant to the Chief Medical Examiner's Office.  I, with many other forensic dentists, are responsible for identifying those victims who cannot be identified by any means except their dentition.  This, as you can imagine,  is a very tedious and laborious task because of the condition of the bodies.  I had hoped that following the bombing of the WTC in 1993 I
would not have to experience working on another terrorist disaster. Please keep us in your prayers, as well as all the others who are called to respond to this disaster.  

 

My best regards, Jeff Burkes

Dear Matts,

 

All of us at the Rotary Club of Portland Metropolitan share our

sincerest sympathies with all who are affected by this indescribable

assault. Please find the attached copy of the statement posted on our

web site ( www.portlandmetrorotary.com ).

 

I hope it conveys what Rotary's attitude should be at this time. As

the attachment indicates, we encourage Rotary web sites everywhere to

join us in permanent placement of the American Flag in honor of our countrymen

who have been lost. Please share this anywhere possible.

 

 Sincerely,

 

 Erik Tollefson

 Club Service Chairman

 Rotary Club of Portland Metropolitan

 District 5100

 Portland, OR

As the event was unfolding, my phone rang.

My daughters Brazilian father (she was a Rotary exchange student in 88-89) called to express his outrage, sympathy and concern. He had been unable to reach my daughter directly.  I later learned that she was in a classroom at UMass Boston, watching Logan Airport and knowing what had happened in NY. She was interestingly enough in a class for Middle East Studies.  The conversation was lively.  As an exchange student, she learned about the other side of the coin, relating to United States and how the world views us.  Her husband is also of Lebanese descent. Afonso was so upset and wished to tell someone in The United States that he cared.
We all have stories like that.  I thank God For Rotary, my friends through Rotary and all the good that Rotary does and will continue to do.

Sharon Harbula
now of Northmont Rotary in Englewood Ohio
formerly of Colonie Guildlerland Rotary, in Colonie, NY

Matts,

I am a member of the Angels Murphys Rotary Club, here in the California Foothills. http://www.a-mrotary.org We are a small club, 40 or so, and rural country dwellers, in District 5220.

Our club passed out your account of what you went through seeing the collapse of the Twin Towers, and wanted to tell you I know your horrors!

August 15th, my 21 year old daughter, only child, and her fiancée, moved to NYC. I accompanied them to their new home, 4 blocks south of the World Trade Center. The corner of Greenwich and Rector - http://www.88greenwich.com Shannon was in her apartment when the first plane hit, her fiancée was at law school at NYU. He called her and she turned on the TV about the time the window went black with the collapse of the first tower. Falling debris came past the window, and she grabbed a sweatshirt, her purse, put on thongs and headed out the door.

Others from the apartment were in the hallway discussing staying or going out, they collectively decided they needed to leave, and wet down t-shirts and tied to their faces and left the building. They had to travel South, before they could circle to one side and head North. As they were walking through the thick dust and debris, they heard shouts "The second tower is coming down, RUN" and they did!

From what I understand from her, they were on Greenwich before Battery Park.

Finally around 8:15 or so Pacific Time, she got a cellular call to me, and I advised where her fiancée was to wait for her, I was on a cell phone call to him as we both watched in horror as the second tower collapsed, neither of us knowing where Shannon was!

They reunited at NYU and found a hotel for Tuesday night. They are now staying on the floor of an acquaintance's apartment, I have not heard from her today on how well that will work. This woman and my daughter met when they were children, and have had no contact  since then, but she and her roommates graciously opened their apartment to them.

God Bless you and your family, and our fellow NY Rotarians Fellow

Rotarian, Lynda

Lynda Key - Tusoni

Goldrush World Access

I am Donna Walton and I am the president of the Fredonia Rotary Club in Nacogdoches, Texas. I received your e-mail describing the terror of last Tuesday. Please know that our club will be praying for you and your members. We will observe a moment of silence at our next meeting and ask that our members contact you to offer support and encouragement.

Is there anything our club can do? Is there anything specifically that you need that we can provide? Please let me know.

We will continue our prayers for you and your club members.

Sincerely,

Donna Walton

 Dear Rotary friend,

 

 We are a brand new club (chartered in June this year)

 in a rural area of California. But we want to assure

 you that in this time of national tragedy and sorrow,

 our members and our community are with you in prayer

 and fellowship.

 

 Thank you for sharing your terrible experience with

 all of us. As we were reciting the Four Way Test yesterday

 at our meeting, we were reflecting on the meaning of

 this tragedy. We want to believe that this will

 BENEFIT our country and stress once more the sanctity

 of life, the value of freedom and democracy, and most importantly,

 that it will start a world-wide campaign against terrorism. The death

 of so many innocent people will not be in vain !

 

 Our prayers are with you, your club, your community.

 

 Yours in Rotary,

 

 Jean-Jacques C. Vitrac

 President

 West Calaveras Rotary Club

www.westcalaverasrotary.org

  Vitrac@Consultant.com

 

Dear Helen, Matts and Tom (Rotary Club of New York, and Rotary Club of  Washington D.C.)

 Out here in Poway, California (Rotary Club 932, near San Diego,  District 5340) our thoughts and prayers are with you in New York and Washington, and with those who have lost loved ones as a result of this unspeakable violation of human rights. These acts of cruelty and inhumanity against humanity, these acts of terror and terrorism have revealed the generous heart of Americans and the evil heart of those who have no  conscience.

 Our tears cannot wash away the pain we feel for your tragic loss, nor will they cleanse the incredible lifetime of suffering that will  result from this mindless act of insanity and misguided and demented religious zeal.

 None the less, we weep and pray with the hope that in this time of great pain those most directly affected will find some small comfort in the shared grief by all who love peace and freedom.

 Our prayers are with you. Our club will be sending a financial contribution to your fund. If we can help in some other way please let us know.

 Jay Goldby, President, Rotary Club of Poway

 "Mankind is Our Business"