Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 11
Roxanne Sullivan Honors Flight 93's 40 Victims After 9,000 Days of Volunteer Service
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 11

Roxanne Sullivan Honors Flight 93's 40 Victims After 9,000 Days of Volunteer Service

1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 11

Summary

  • More than 9,000 days after United Flight 93 crashed near Shanksville, Roxanne Sullivan is still volunteering at the Flight 93 National Memorial to honor the 40 passengers and crew members killed.
  • Sullivan’s commitment began two weeks after Sept. 11, 2001, when she first reached the crash site near her home, knelt in prayer and said she felt compelled to care for those who "fell in my backyard."
  • At the memorial, she is part of a small group of local residents and National Park Service staff who keep the victims’ memory alive through tours, family visits, wreath-laying and other commemorations.
  • The site includes a 17-ton sandstone boulder marking where the Boeing 757 went down, underscoring how a global tragedy permanently tied the victims’ legacy to the small Pennsylvania town.

Insights

What untold stories of courage do locals like Roxanne Sullivan share with visitors at the Flight 93 crash site 25 years later?
After 25 years of living beside a national tragedy, what hidden toll does guarding the memory of Flight 93 take on local volunteers?
As the 25th anniversary arrives, who will inherit the deeply personal mission of honoring Flight 93 when the original neighbors step down?