Christopher Shays: “Mr. Speaker, 9/11 was a wake-up call from hell. We all know how we reacted to it, but the weeks that followed for those…”

“Mr. Speaker, 9/11 was a wake-up call from hell. We all know how we reacted to it, but the weeks that followed for those of us in the greater New York area had special meaning. It was a very poignant time. I think of the family of Joe Coppo whose son, Joseph, said good-bye to him. And he talked about his dad and he said: Dad, you wanted me to become an adult. This is a young man now in college, and he told us of all of the things he said that his dad wanted him to learn. And then he said: Dad I have learned from you, and don't worry, I'll be there to take care of Mom. Or the next week in the same church, Frank Fechet in talking about his son, Brad, and all of the things that he wanted him to learn and then he said: But, son, I learned far more from you than you ever learned from me. Or going to a service in Easton, Connecticut, at a small old church. It was built hundreds of years ago. Everybody couldn't fit in. It was a beautiful, sunny day and they were talking about a father, mother, and a precious 3-year-old child. They talked about the father and the mother, and then they had the nursery school where this 3-year-old child went, they had the teachers come and talk about this young child in a very precious way and then had us sing one of her favorite songs. When I left, the parents wanted to see me; and they said this can't be about anger and hate.…”