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Upper School Students Hear 9-11 Accounts from St. Luke's Faculty and Staff
This week, St. Luke’s seniors in the Literature of War elective tackled the topic of 9-11 and heard first-person accounts from some St. Luke’s faculty and staff members. Students broke out into small groups to hear others’ experiences when this tragedy struck our country 19 years ago today.
Literature of War teacher Liz Perry shared, “The essential question of our course is, ‘How do we remember and tell the stories of war?’ and I try to underscore for my students that these stories are all around us, if only we ask. More than 50 faculty and staff members volunteered to be interviewed. It tells me that we want to share our stories—everyone has a 9/11 story. As there are only 16 students in the class, they were only able to hear from some of them. This event is too recent to be commonly taught in history classes and yet too long ago for our students to have experienced it themselves. So one way we remember is to ask others to tell us their stories.”
A sample of the various reflections included:
Ginny Bachman, Director of Admission and Financial Aid
"I was initially paralyzed but quickly sprung into action. I called my husband and told him to get a rental car to drive home (in Salt Lake City for business). He had gotten the last car and managed to escape a week or month’s worth of waiting for a flight."
Nicole Guido, Assistant Athletic Trainer
"We had a family friend who was in his early twenties that worked in the second tower. My dad stayed in the city for days with his dad and his best friend to look for his body."
Brinley Ehlers, Middle School Math Teacher
“It really was a unifying moment. Everyone would wear American flag buttons, and there was a great sense of patriotism. I specifically remember the Yankees return game, and the sense of pride and normalcy people felt."
Christine Costello, Executive Assistant for Head of School
(Working at ABC News at the time) "This was the day I grew up and became an adult."
Jason Warner, Upper School Science Teacher
We aren’t invincible, which was felt after 9/11. We mainly send troops abroad, and we don’t always think about people coming to us. I also remember the feeling of pride when rebuilding. NY people aren’t always thought of as great people who help a lot, but there is a lot of good spirit in Manhattan.
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Literature of War teacher Liz Perry shared, “The essential question of our course is, ‘How do we remember and tell the stories of war?’ and I try to underscore for my students that these stories are all around us, if only we ask. More than 50 faculty and staff members volunteered to be interviewed. It tells me that we want to share our stories—everyone has a 9/11 story. As there are only 16 students in the class, they were only able to hear from some of them. This event is too recent to be commonly taught in history classes and yet too long ago for our students to have experienced it themselves. So one way we remember is to ask others to tell us their stories.”
A sample of the various reflections included:
Ginny Bachman, Director of Admission and Financial Aid
"I was initially paralyzed but quickly sprung into action. I called my husband and told him to get a rental car to drive home (in Salt Lake City for business). He had gotten the last car and managed to escape a week or month’s worth of waiting for a flight."
Nicole Guido, Assistant Athletic Trainer
"We had a family friend who was in his early twenties that worked in the second tower. My dad stayed in the city for days with his dad and his best friend to look for his body."
Brinley Ehlers, Middle School Math Teacher
“It really was a unifying moment. Everyone would wear American flag buttons, and there was a great sense of patriotism. I specifically remember the Yankees return game, and the sense of pride and normalcy people felt."
Christine Costello, Executive Assistant for Head of School
(Working at ABC News at the time) "This was the day I grew up and became an adult."
Jason Warner, Upper School Science Teacher
We aren’t invincible, which was felt after 9/11. We mainly send troops abroad, and we don’t always think about people coming to us. I also remember the feeling of pride when rebuilding. NY people aren’t always thought of as great people who help a lot, but there is a lot of good spirit in Manhattan.
St. Luke’s School is a secular (non-religious), private school in New Canaan, CT for grades 5 through 12 serving over 40 towns in Connecticut and New York. Our exceptional academics and diverse co-educational community foster students’ intellectual and ethical development and prepare them for top colleges. St. Luke’s Leading with Humanity curriculum builds the commitment to serve and the confidence to lead.
