Vito Fossella: “Mr. Speaker, 44 days ago thousands of innocent, brave souls began to rest with the Almighty. Each individual is a…”

“Mr. Speaker, 44 days ago thousands of innocent, brave souls began to rest with the Almighty. Each individual is a chapter in the wonderful and cherished story known as America. They were born in different towns. Some spoke different languages. They worshipped different faiths: Christian, Jew, Hindu and Muslim. At home, they were known by different names: sister, brother, aunt, uncle, grandma, grandpa, son, daughter, mom, and dad. At home, they did different things. They coached little league; they instructed in the Bible; they taught our kids how to play soccer. During the day they had different jobs, dishwasher, broker, secretary, electrician, accountant, police officer, EMS worker, court officer, soldier, sailor, marine, airman, firefighter, and so much more. That was up until September 11. They were the essence of America. But these differences that they had were minor compared to the things they had in common. They all cherished freedom and they all loved America. After September 11, they each had one more thing in common. They united this Nation, the crucible of liberty, to keep us strong, just and free. It is thus our task to ensure that future generations know, acknowledge, and remain thankful to the honorable lives that perished tragically, but not in vain, on September 11, 2001.”