09/11/2022
May we never forget….
It’s worth sharing again…
I had just delivered 20 Cummins Engines to an RV Plant in South Bend, dropped and hooked in Niles, Michigan and was southbound on US 31 heading back to Indianapolis in a Freightliner FL 70 day cab. No air condition and a spring ride seat. That truck was horrible, but it had a great radio and sound system. The only upgrade that freightshaker had. I was 25 and loved owning my own truck moving freight. I was listening to The Bob & Tom Show and they announced a plane had hit one of the towers. Their comedy show quickly became a serious news broadcast that kept me from losing it out on the road. That’s where I was on 9/11.
2996 people were dying or about to die.
Numbers. Let’s talk about one of those numbers. John Ogonowski was American Airlines Flight 11 Captain. He was also a farmer. Blueberries, Peaches, and a whole lot of hay. That is how we describe ourselves as farmers, right? Not us but what we farm. John loved flying, but always said he was a farmer first. Loving husband and father to three daughters.
Laura, his daughter said:
"He was a farmer at heart. I think he loved flying planes, but in his heart and his soul, he was a farmer. He was driving tractors well before he had his driver's license”
"Not only did he farm, he liked sharing farming and talking about farming with others”
Let’s try and remember that every single number in the 2996 represents someone who was loved and is still grieved for today. Remember them.
Remember John the farmer who happened to also be a pilot on that fateful day.