Let Us Remember…Road Scholar Transport Pays Tribute to the Victims of 9/11

September 11, 2001 is a day that will forever be etched into the minds of Americans everywhere.  Many of us remember where we were and what we were doing the moment we heard that a plane had crashed into one of the twin towers.  Soon later we learned about additional hijackings and strikes on the remaining tower, the Pentagon, and near Shanksville, PA, avoiding the terrorists’ intended target, the Capital building. 

Road Scholar Transport pays tribute to the victims of 9/11 not just in September, but year-round with our Flight 93 and Rolling Memorial awareness trucks, which travel the country delivering freight, hope, and the reminder that we are all in this together.

93 Cents for Flight 93

The bald eagle became the official bird emblem of the United States in 1782, symbolizing strength, freedom, and independence.  So what better symbol to display on our tractor trailer than just that?

Road Scholar Transport’s Flight 93 tractor features the head of an American eagle with the trailer depicting its wings in flight.  Along the bottom of the trailer runs the names of the 40 people who lost their lives that day onboard Flight 93.

In April 2011, Road Scholar volunteered to transport a large piece of steel, once part of the World Trade Center, to Dracut Fire Department in MA.  The steel, which weighed 1,143 lbs and measured in at 84 inches long, was picked up at the JFK Airport in NY by Road Scholar in our Flight 93 awareness truck and was escorted from the Cross Point Towers in Lowell, MA by Lowell Police and Fire Departments to the Dracut High School for an appearance.  Afterwards, the procession continued to their final stop at the Dracut Fire Station.

The steel became part of Dracut’s 9/11 Memorial Project in honor of those who lost their lives on 9/11.  Among them, Captain John Ogonowski, the pilot of the first plane that hit the World Trade Center and whose farm is located across from the fire hall.

Father Zimmerman blessed the steel, which was then set in a mold at the new firehouse so that people can touch it, along with other 9/11 artifacts, as well as a stone dedicated to all who lost their lives as a result of the attacks.

Rolling Memorial

Road Scholar’s Rolling Memorial awareness truck made its debut just in time for the 10-year anniversary of the attacks.  On one side of the tractor, dubbed “Unit 911,” lays an image of the Freedom Tower.  On the other side, written in red, are the names of the 1st responders, creating the red stripes in the Flag of Honor with the Statue of Liberty in the background and the phrase “Have You Forgotten?” the title to a Darryl Worley’s country song.  The hood of the tractor displays an enlarged version of the 9/11 Heroes Stamp.

The trailer, which has brought tears to many, contains the names (nearly 3,000) of all those who lost their lives as a result of the 9/11 events.  These names surround an image of the World Trade Center which overlays the American flag in the center of the trailer.

Each corner of the trailer pays tribute to one of the planes that were hijacked (Flight 93, United Airlines Flight 175, American Airlines Flight 77, and Flight 173), with a list of the crew and passengers who passed away on each particular flight.

On its debut run, Road Scholar’s 9/11 Rolling Memorial truck transferred a 778 lb piece of steel from the World Trade Center from Shanksville, PA to Tennessee, stopping at two locations.  The first was Downtown Savannah, TN for Darryl Worley’s Tennessee River Run, where the WTC artifact was displayed.

Road Scholar then transported the artifact to Pickwick Landing State Park for another concert.  Among those to perform was Darryl Worley, whose song title “Have You Forgotten” is written across Road Scholar’s tractor.

On Sept. 11^th, 2016, a crowd gathered at East Stroudsburg University of PA to watch as 9/11 disabled first responder, James Hagner, strapped on a harness and pulled the awareness truck, weighing in at approximately 36,000 lbs, to help raise money for the FealGood Foundation.                                                                                                                           

The FealGood Foundation aims to assist 9/11 first responders who were injured and their families, along with helping to spread awareness about the catastrophic health effects 9/11 had on these individuals.

Hagner spent 43 days at the site as a volunteer fireman during 9/11 and has been disabled since the age of 36.  After enduring a diabetic coma in May 2013, the doctors had told him that he had the lungs of a 92-year-old.  “I never had asthma and it began there and worked its way up,” says Hagner.  “For being a first responder of 9/11 and a tier 4, I was only given 2 years to live.”

Hagner was greeted with applause as he successfully pulled the truck across the parking lot.  “I'm beyond honored to say that I did this to show other first responders, ill, diabetic, obese and those that are as sick as me that life isn't over!  No one will ever forget those who sacrificed their lives on one of America's most tragic attacks in history on American soil,” he said.  “It meant the world to see everyone come together that was able to be there or on Facebook Live in body and spirit to share this time with all of us!  So many were lost, injured, and mentally and emotionally impacted on this tragic day.  I just want to say thank you to everyone who made the event possible!  You all made dreams a reality and no matter how hard anyone has it, where there's a will there's a way and I set my goal, determined to save my life, by breaking out of my shell and fighting for my family and friends and the 9/11 community to stand up and do this one step at a time!  We did this as ONE and we will never forget this!”

To view all of the great causes Road Scholar spreads awareness for, click here.

 

Let us remember and never forget….