This weekend was my 50th high school reunion from ETHS (for those of you not in the area, Evanston Township High School). What an amazing time it was, and I want to write more about it later…but for now, I do want to share an experience we had on the way home.
As Andy and I drove to the city Sunday morning, 9/11, for an after-party event, we passed a field of flags at Randall Oaks Park, and we decided to stop by on our way home to explore what he knew to be a 9/11 commemoration.
We did stop in around 6 in the evening on our return trip, and I was so moved by what we found — probably the most meaningful 9/11 memorial I have witnessed in the fifteen years since that terrible day.
It occurs to me that the shooting of President Kennedy and a 50th reunion weekend that happened to conclude on 9/11 form a bracket of some sort around the adult lives of many of us who entered high school in 1962. At our reunion, there was a beautiful memorial for classmates we lost over the years, too many — but many others from our very large class achieved and continue to achieve so much.
These two events changed our world forever. As I ended my day, I thought about those 2976 Americans killed then, each of whom had a brief description of who they were attached to the flag representing them on Randall Rd. in West Dundee. What might they have achieved and contributed to the world?
Thank you, West Dundee and True Patriots Care.
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