by Pat Monacelli
Ten years ago today - on September 11th, 2001 - I was celebrating my three-month anniversary with Foothills United Way. We had just kicked off our 2001 Community Giving Campaign a couple of weeks earlier, launching our busiest fundraising season. We were preparing for meetings with current and prospective donors, company campaign rallies and many events and agency fairs.
Early that Tuesday morning, I was having a conversation with my 10-year-old daughter about bullying; specifically, standing up for yourself when faced with bullying. We talked about not letting bullies make you feel bad about yourself. As we talked, out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of the television and saw a jet barreling into one of the World Trade Center towers. We sat there for a minute, and finally my little girl asked me what was going on. I answered, “I don’t really know, but it looks bad.” I tried to be reassuring, and walked her to the bus stop.
I made my way in to work, and the office was buzzing. Ten years ago, the internet wasn’t nearly as robust an immediate news source as it is today, so we were scanning stations on our radios trying to find out what was happening. We found a small, portable black and white television in a closet and hooked it up, hoping its little antenna could find us a station where we could get some news.
As the reports came in and the gravity of the situation revealed itself, it became very apparent that many people in New York, D.C. and Pennsylvania would be in need of help. We began to get calls from Boulder and Broomfield county residents asking what they could do, how they could help. Within just hours, United Way Worldwide (United Way of America at the time) set up a fund to receive donations to help victims, families and communities. Residents of our community gave. And gave. The outpouring of compassion was extraordinary.
More than once that day, I flashed back to the conversation my daughter and I were having that morning about bullying. We, as a nation, were facing the bully of terrorism. They had pushed us down and hurt us badly. As I told my daughter that morning, we needed to stand up for ourselves – we needed to show resiliency.
We did, and we have. Ten years on now, Americans time and time again have come to each other’s aid – and the aid of other nations - in times of greatest need. Through disasters such as Hurricane Katrina, the Indian Ocean tsunami, the Mississippi tornadoes, the earthquakes in Haiti and Japan and others, Americans - and Boulder and Broomfield county residents - have generously given of their time and resources to help out those most desperately in need.
What makes our local efforts special, though, is that even when giving to people hundreds or thousands of miles away, local folks never lose sight of needs right here at home. Our local United Way campaigns have remained strong every year, through disasters and tough financial times, because people here in Boulder and Broomfield counties understand that when people need help - whether it’s rebuilding a home in New Orleans or helping a child succeed in school in Lafayette – it means we all have to step up, give a little, and help create positive change.
On this 10th anniversary of that dark day in American history, we at Foothills United Way want to remember the victims of that day, to honor the brave heroes that responded to the disaster, and to thank the generous people who reached out to their fellow man then, and continue to do so today.
Pat Monacelli is Foothills United Way's Director of Communications and Marketing.
