2,977…is it just another number?

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Christopher J. Bergstol
  • 4th Training Squadron Commander
SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. --  Two thousand nine hundred and seventy seven...is it just another number? As a native New Yorker, I am usually not at a loss for words, but the events that unfolded on 11 September 2001 left me speechless. 2,977 people died that day as victims of an act of hatred against our nation and our national values.

It's been a decade since the events of that day unfolded and I remember it like it happened yesterday. I was on a training deployment with the 492nd Fighter Squadron to a NATO base in Norway and was mission planning for the next day's flight. It was early afternoon and an American Exchange officer flying with the German Air Force entered our planning room and told us to find a TV immediately. He told us that a plane had just struck the World Trade Center in New York City.

What I saw unfold in the next 60 minutes fundamentally changed, for me, what it meant to be an Air Force Officer. As I witnessed the second airplane hit the South Tower and the subsequent collapses, I was numb with disbelief, filled with anger, and rashly wanted revenge. As the events of the day continued to unfold, including the attack on the Pentagon and the carnage in Pennsylvania, my thoughts went to my high school friends and family members who worked in lower Manhattan. That night I finally received word from my best friend living in Washington, DC. He told me that a neighbor from our hometown was dead.

Firefighter John D. Marshall, or "Danny" as I knew him, was a few years older than I. He was the guy on the block we all looked up to as a mentor. He was the friendly older kid who always took the time to talk and to laugh and to teach and to protect. He was a gentle giant and had a warm personality that made people feel safe and comfortable around him. Danny joined the New York City Fire Department a few years after I joined the Air Force and he was assigned to Ladder Company 27 in the Bronx. However, on that day, he was working with Engine Company 23 in Manhattan. Danny was one of the 411 New York City Firefighters, Port Authority Police Officers, New York City Police Officers and other Emergency Medical Service personnel that died that day serving the people of New York City.

The selfless service and dedication that Firefighter Danny Marshall, the emergency service workers and everyday people demonstrated on 11 September 2011 reaffirmed to me what it means to be an Air Force Officer and Airman in the dangerous world climate which was brought into sharp focus on that unforgettable day. For me, being an Airman boils down to serving a cause that is higher than yourself and is never about you. Serving that higher cause requires an utter dedication to striving for nothing less than the standard of perfection on a daily basis, always endeavoring to do the job right the first time and every time.

Selfless service and dedication take on many shapes and sizes in our Air Force. It can be as simple as, for example, making sure as a front-line maintainer that you quickly and safely generate aircraft on a holiday weekend in accordance with established Tech Order guidance so that Aircrew can fly Operation NOBLE EAGLE sorties over Washington, DC in a no-fail Presidential protection mission. It's the Airman in the Comptroller squadron making sure a PCS voucher is properly filled out the first time so that our Airmen can dedicate their time and resources to the wing's mission without having to worry about re-accomplishing the voucher due to an error in processing. It's the F-15E aircrew taking the right amount time to plan, brief, execute and debrief every mission so that we can learn from what we did and apply those lessons to the next training or combat flight.
It has recently been widely reported in many professional publications that our Air Force is reaching an uncertain time and that this uncertainty will continue to grow. Unending budget cuts, continuing personnel cuts, increased deployments, continuing operational requirements and increased stresses on families are factors that may make some think twice about their selfless service and what the commitment to a cause greater than oneself really means.

As the 10th anniversary of the 11 September 2001 attacks on our nation nears, I ask that you take a deeper look at why you are in the United States Air Force. If you are having trouble finding the motivation to keep serving in the midst of uncertainty, I can think of at least 2,977 reasons to continue to selflessly serve your nation and continue to dedicate yourself to the profession of arms. Because of unsung heroes like Firefighter John "Danny" Marshall, I know I will continue my commitment to a greater cause, will you join me?