Twenty-five years later, what stays with me isn’t the scale of the tragedy.
It’s the scale of the kindness.
Nobody in Gander knew they were creating a story that would inspire books, movies, documentaries, and even a Broadway musical.
They weren’t trying to make history.
They were simply doing what they believed was right.
Schools opened.
Churches opened.
Legion halls opened.
Volunteers arrived.
Blankets appeared.
Food appeared.
Toothbrushes appeared.
Thousands of frightened strangers who had no idea where they were suddenly found themselves surrounded by people determined to help.
And yet, by the end of September 11, nobody in Gander knew how extraordinary the next few days would become.
The passengers had only just arrived.
Many still hadn’t reached their families.
Some were desperately waiting for news from New York.
Others still didn’t fully understand what had happened.
The friendships hadn’t formed.
The heartbreak hadn’t unfolded.
The reunions hadn’t happened.
The stories that would eventually make Gander famous around the world were only beginning.
What happened on September 11 brought the world to Newfoundland.
What happened over the days that followed revealed something far more important.
It revealed the character of a small town.
And it revealed the character of a country.
Over the next few articles, I’ll tell those stories.
The passengers.
The volunteers.
The friendships.
The losses.
The moments of humour.
The acts of kindness that people still talk about more than two decades later.
Before the next installment, I encourage you to watch Diverted, the CBC dramatization of the events that unfolded in Gander after September 11, 2001.
Because we’ve only reached the end of Day One.
The planes may have brought the world to Gander.
What happened next is what made the world remember it.
For five days, a small Newfoundland town became home to thousands of strangers.
This is their story.
And it is Canada’s story too.
Next in the series: Day Two – The Morning After
#TheWorldCameToTown #GanderSeries #GeezerWiseSays