I keep an old folder filled with memorabilia that I pull out from time to time to reminisce. Among its contents are four newspaper clippings. Three contain articles about me, and one holds a full front page from September 11, 2001. Over my lifetime, I have lived through moments that forever marked history: the assassination of JFK, the moon landing, and the explosion of the Challenger. But 9/11 holds a distinct place in my memory.
That morning, I arrived early at our crisis and suicide hotline office to relieve our overnight volunteer and prepare for a busy day. Around 8:45 AM, our morning phone volunteers arrived, and I briefed them on the overnight calls. Suddenly, my office phone rang. It was Sally, frantically telling me to turn on the TV in the phone room because a plane had struck a building in New York City. She promised to call back once she reached our program director.
As another staff member walked in, I switched on the television. We stood there, trying to process the unbelievable image on the screen, just as the second plane struck the second tower. Though our team was professionally trained to navigate crises, nothing could have prepared us for this. After moments of stunned disbelief, tears filled the room as the horror unfolded. Then, a sudden realization hit us: the phones had gone completely silent. The nation, and the world, had fallen into collective shock.
We immediately called in additional volunteers to staff the phone lines. Meanwhile, our staff had been scheduled to attend Trident United Way’s second annual Day of Caring breakfast—an event where hundreds of volunteers were ready to go to local nonprofits to paint, organize, and landscape.
Gathered in grief and shock, the organizers asked if the event should be canceled. Instead of retreating, everyone made a remarkable choice. They chose to go out into the community and serve. That spirit of resilience established a tradition, and every year since, Trident United Way holds its annual Day of Caring on September 11 as a legacy of service.
My project that day was at the Medical University of South Carolina in downtown Charleston, where twelve nonprofit agencies were setting up informational tables and a free lunch. Very few people came out into the courtyard that morning, so we gathered to comfort one another and stay updated by phone.
We soon learned that all commercial air traffic had been grounded and that local military bases and ports, including the former Navy Base where our hotline was located, were placed under strict security. Guards were posted at every entrance for the first time in years, requiring us to coordinate security clearances and IDs for our incoming shift volunteers.
While our Charleston Hotline served the entire Tricounty area and partnered with global crisis networks, there was no formal coordination process. To assist New York City’s flooded crisis lines, temporary phone banks were set up outside the city and incoming calls were routed to centers around the country. I will never forget the emails from crisis centers in England, Ireland, Canada, and Israel offering their comfort and support.
The events of 9/11 fundamentally reshaped U.S. mental health policy. In the aftermath, suicide rates rose sharply among young adults, and individuals managing substance use disorders. Congress allocated funding to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to construct a unified national crisis network. On January 1, 2005, that initiative officially launched as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-TALK, now simplified to 988), linking 109 certified crisis centers nationwide to ensure no call for help would go unanswered.
Looking back at that newspaper from September 11, I am reminded that even in the darkest moments of national tragedy, human connection and community remain. That day redefined how we care for one another and created many heroes in our community and nation.