The American Legion Tango Alpha Lima podcast has launched its first of 20 memorable, inspiring and captivating stories related to the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
One episode of the special podcast series will be published each weekday by 9 a.m. Eastern, starting on Aug. 16 and concluding on Sept. 10.
Here’s a snapshot of the first episodes that will be released this week:
• Monday: “It really felt like I was surviving Dec. 7, 1941.”
Past American Legion National Commander Ric Santos was on Capitol Hill that morning, ready to present the organization’s priorities to Congress at 10 a.m. “We heard a loud boom that sounded like a sonic jet,” he says, describing the plane that hit the Pentagon, just miles away. Listen to the audio version here or watch the video on YouTube here.
• Tuesday: “I just felt this concussion wave go right through me.” Jimmy Brown, a New York City firefighter who escaped before one of the towers collapsed. Brown, a Marine Corps veteran, heard the first plane and the explosion, then saw “debris raining down” as he emerged from the firehouse and headed to the scene. Listen to the audio version here or watch the video on YouTube here.
• Wednesday: “All of a sudden my life changed.”
Army Sgt. Major Clifford Lovejoy recounts the “loud boom” and his subsequent, harrowing escape from the Pentagon on 9/11. It was the day before what “was supposed to be the biggest day of my life” when he was scheduled to meet the president and visit Capitol Hill. Listen to the audio version here or watch the video on YouTube here.
• Thursday: “We froze right there in our tracks.”
Retired Marine Lt. Col. Darling reveals what it was like to spend the day with President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney as they prepared the U.S. response. Darling, who retired from the Marine Corps in 2007, flew attack helicopters in Desert Shield and Desert Storm. After his service, he was chosen to work for the White House Military Office, Airlift Operations Department, which is what led him to the unique experience on 9/11. Listen to the audio version here or watch the video on YouTube here.
• Friday: “It was an emotional roller coaster for all of us.”
Linda Beecher was a single mother and EMT with the New York Fire Department on 9/11. Beecher, a member of The American Legion Auxiliary, served as a liaison that morning and worked in the field through the following May. She describes the first World Trade Center collapsing and the 16-hour days working at the morgue, cataloging all the body parts, personal effects, damaged equipment and more. Listen to the audio version here or watch the video on YouTube here.
Visit legion.org/tangoalphalima to download each episode in this special series in audio format or watch on The American Legion YouTube channel, youtube.com/c/americanlegionHQ.
