During the Great Burgh Staycation, one of our goals was to travel two hours East of Pittsburgh and visit the Flight 93 Memorial in Somerset County. I personally had already been to the World Trade Center and Pentagon sites. They are not at all like the Flight 93 site.

The contrast between the bustling progress filled with constant subtle reminders of what happened at the World Trade Center and the stark lack of bustling progress at the Flight 93 site was disconcerting. While the World Trade Center site is bathed in political turmoil, the fact of the matter is that a fitting memorial is being constructed and every single person working at that site is aware of the magnitude of their efforts. At the Flight 93 site, a lone volunteer mans the site, providing periodic presentations and answering questions. Beyond that, it is a tiny little square of land amidst a huge open field, filled with trinkets, tokens of appreciation, and mementos left behind by site visitors.

My feelings about what happened to the people that died where that flag now flies are perfectly summed up by a letter hanging at the site:

In case you can't read it, the letter says:

This site is where Flight 93 crashed. Its real destination was the White House.

If it weren't for four brave men who knows what would have happened to the government. This country honors those men as heroes. September 11, 2001 was a terrible day, but it could have been worse. I thank those men.

Joshua Phillips
7-01-05
Anderson, SC

There are plans to build a permanent memorial at the Flight 93 site. Fundraising efforts have, thus far, been somewhat lackluster. Awareness is certainly not what it should be. I feel like people are starting to forget the sacrifice the people aboard that plane knowingly made.

I refuse to forget.

Advertising revenues from this site are normally deposited in full to Alexis' savings account. It's her blog, so it's her money--every penny of it. However, this month we will be remembering all of the victims of 9/11, and specifically the Flight 93 heroes, by donating all September revenue to the Flight 93 Memorial Fund. Ad revenue is determined by page views, so if you would like to help us contribute a little more money, click around. You can also honor the Flight 93 passengers by donating directly here.