Zero to Dream Job in 90 Days!

Day #89. After 9/11

Photo from unSplash

In the spring of 2002, my friend told me that a woman was organizing a summer reprieve for Fire, police, widowers and their families who had survived 9/11. She was coordinating the NYC families with people on Cape Cod that were willing to give up their homes for a week so they could have a vacation. I told my friend I wanted to be a part of it, even though my home was a very humble cottage. The woman matched up numbers of bedrooms with the families and put together activities like clambakes, tours whale watches and beach passes that the families could use.

We met our family through a letter in the mail and it was a fireman who had worked at the clean up of Ground Zero for months. His wife and two daughters would also be coming to stay. They were so excited and so appreciative. My daughter and I left them notes, maps, books on Cape Cod and directions to our favorite spots to go and relax.

She and I also talked about where would go for the week and we decided to go to Montreal! We all left before the families came, so they could have privacy. And off we went! We had a wonderful trip and stopped wherever we wanted all along the way. We went to western MA on the way home also for a few days and visited my Dad and best friend from childhood. We had a wonderful time, especially knowing a family was having a worry and cost free vacation on Cape Cod. We felt it was a small sacrifice and were honored to do it.

When we returned a week later, we couldn’t believe what we found! The table was a mountain of gifts for my daughter and I. Gift certificates, pictures of the family enjoying the Cape, and all sorts of other assorted, thoughtful gifts. Our hearts were warmed by their generosity toward us, as theirs had been by us. It was one of the most fantastic and fulfilling things I’ve ever had a chance to be a part of.

One Day to Go! 🦋