"9/11 is an indelible part of our family story," retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Sean Gallagher said.
The career military man was the keynote speaker Wednesday morning at Lancaster County's annual 9/11 remembrance service. He spoke to a large audience of first responders, family members and friends gathered at the county Public Safety Training Center to honor those killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks as well as the 52 Lancaster County first responders who have died in the line of duty.
Gallagher, who retired from the Army in 2018, was part of the 82nd Airborne Division and served in Iraq and Afghanistan. His brother, Daniel J. "Danny" Gallagher, was a bond trader at Cantor Fitzgerald at the World Trade Center and died in the 9/11 attacks.
On that morning 23 years ago, Gallagher was with his unit was at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, (since renamed Fort Liberty), beginning the last day of a training exercise. He was conducting an equipment inventory when word came that a plane had struck one of the Twin Towers. He made his way to a television in time to see the second plane hit.
"That was the moment that changed my life," he said. He realized his brother's life was in danger, and that his country, which he had sworn an oath to protect, was under attack.
The rest of the day was a chaotic blur as the news poured in and personnel worked to secure the base. It was several days before he could rejoin his family in Middletown, New Jersey.
The impact of 9/11 on Middletown was immense. In all, 37 residents died in the 9/11 attacks, including not only Gallagher's brother but one of his best friends from high school. For weeks, there was "an unending series of funerals and memorials," he said.
"So trust me when I say, we will never forget 911 in my family, nor will we ever forget it in Middletown," he said. "But I also remember the kindness, generosity, patriotism and love that followed."
Gallagher was deployed to Iraq for a year beginning in 2004; fortunately, he said, everyone in his unit was able to make it home safely. Others were not so lucky: A good friend of his, Ranger Capt. Russell Rippetoe, lost his life with three fellow Rangers in a 2003 suicide bomb attack.
"We are a better nation because of men and women like Russ … men and women that are willing to step up and serve their nation," he said.
Gallagher was in Afghanistan in 2011 when he learned the U.S. had killed Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks. The news brought mixed emotions, he said: Gladness that the U.S. had persevered in its pursuit of justice, sadness at the memories of his brother that resurfaced.
In a conversation with his mother that evening, they realized that neither had thought to say "I love you" to Danny the last time they spoke with him. Why would they -- they fully expected to see him again.
We should remember, he said, that "the best of our nation's character always reveals itself in our darkest hours, when ordinary men and women step up to do extraordinary acts of courage and sacrifice."
Lastly, he said, "Never pass up an opportunity to tell someone you love them."
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