Never Forget – 9/11/2001

Hi there,

Today is 9/11 and I was born a few months after, nevertheless this day still conjures up powerful memories for me. It reminds me of the day I attended a leadership conference for high school kids. My specific group had about 200 kids and each of us was required to write an essay to submit. The kicker is that none of us were told why we were writing this essay, we were only given a prompt to write about the meaning of being an American citizen.

Later we found out that these essays were being used as a selection process for only four students to be given the opportunity to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. I had written about how I was trying to figure out the meaning of my life and how I wanted to lead it.

The depth of the essay touched on how I wanted each sacrifice that any individual makes to be worth it. That it doesn’t matter if it’s the pain of one person or the trauma of a nation, that dedication is direction and sets us up to make it all worthwhile. The part I wanted to play was to dedicate my life to helping others.

When you dedicate your life to something, it can take different directions to get there. This is how I became a BTS contributor. Because the mission is to give a voice to under-served people and communities. To help make things accessible and provide opportunities. This connects to those that lived through 9/11, by showing them that the future has hope and continues the legacy of helping others.