Twenty years ago today, on Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists hijacked commercial planes and orchestrated attacks on U.S. soil that killed nearly 3,000 people in New York City, Washington D.C., and Pennsylvania. These events, collectively remembered as “9/11,” mark an unforgettable day for our nation and changed everything about how we live our lives—and how we think about safety.
Children born in 2001 now walk the halls of North Central University as students. Their minds do not contain vivid memories of that day, yet they have grown up in a world deeply influenced by what happened the year they were born.
We asked people who were part of the North Central University community in 2001 what it was like on campus on 9/11 and in the days that followed the attacks. Some remembered specific details such as what they were wearing and the exact moment they learned of the attacks. Others processed the events of that day in a more blended narrative, remembering some specifics but not necessarily the order or sequence of events. President Gordon Anderson shared how he approached the situation as a leader of young people (read to the end for his thoughts!).
For each one of them, 9/11 stands set apart as a day they will never forget. Their recollections, in their own words, paint a picture of how the events of Sept. 11, 2001, affected them then and continue to have an impact to this day.
STUDENT PERSPECTIVES
Gina Zarletti ’05
“At that time—as a 19-year-old from the Midwest—I didn’t even know what the World Trade Center was, so I didn’t really understand the weight of what I was hearing. I remember feeling silly because it seemed as if everyone who was saying ‘The World Trade Center’ knew what it was. I didn’t even realize they were talking about New York at first. ‘World Trade Center’ wasn’t registering to me. I walked back to my dorm—in Phillipps Hall—and one of my suitemates had the news on TV in our suite. Right as I was walking into the suite, I saw the second plane hit the second tower. I still didn’t understand what was happening, but I will never forget that moment.
“I remember exactly what I was wearing—even how I did my hair. I remember the moment I heard. I remember the quiet outside … no planes were flying—which was strange for Minneapolis. I remember how it felt weird on campus. I remember talking with friends—trying to understand what was happening—but I also going on with my day in a somewhat normal way (which thinking about that now seems ridiculous, but I truly did not grasp what was happening). No one really knew what to think.
“I had no idea when I got dressed that morning that I would remember every part of that outfit for the rest of my life. I don’t remember anything else I wore in 2001 … and why would I? My parents told me that the things I remember about that day are the same kinds of things they and their parents remember from the day JFK was killed—details you wouldn’t remember about a regular day.”
Gina Zarletti ’05, is Assistant Dean of Student Engagement at North Central University. She was a sophomore student on 9/11/2001.
Kristi Hedstrom ’02
“I was in my 8:00 a.m. Pastoral Theology class when I first heard about the attacks. Our professor, Dr. Jim Allen, came into class a few minutes late; he told us on his drive to campus, he’d heard a radio report that an airplane had hit a building in New York City. He didn’t say (or didn’t know) that it was a commercial jet that intentionally crashed into one of the tallest buildings in the world. Initially, terrorism didn’t even cross my mind. That changed when Beth Ann Rocket, Dr. Gordon Anderson’s administrative assistant, walked into the room. She silently walked to the front of the classroom, handed Dr. Allen a piece of paper, and left. He read it and then soberly told us a second airplane had hit another skyscraper. We knew at that moment—this was no accident. Dr. Allen paused and led us in prayer, but it felt like a blanket of dread had descended on me.
“Walking through the halls after my first class, people were feverishly exchanging news updates. ‘The Pentagon’s been hit!’ ‘The National Mall is on fire!’ ‘The White House is a target!’ ‘A plane went down somewhere in Pennsylvania!’ Not all the reports turned out to be accurate, but fear and disbelief were palpable. It felt surreal, and people coped in various ways—crying, hugging, getting angry, acting nonchalant.
“It sounds a little farfetched now, but at the time, no one knew the scope or the purpose of the attacks. In my 9:30 class, my professor attempted to teach his lesson as usual, but it was impossible to concentrate. About 10 minutes into class, a fellow student burst into the room and announced that one of the World Trade towers had collapsed. I remember feeling utterly shocked by that particular update; I just couldn’t believe it!
“After class, I headed to chapel and sat in the balcony with my brother/sister floor. The atmosphere in the room felt unlike anything I had experienced before. A few students were at the altar, sobbing because they were from the New York/New Jersey area. People were gathered around them, praying. Instead of the scheduled chapel speaker, Dr. [Gordon] Anderson addressed us, and then we spent most of the chapel time in worship and intercession.
After chapel, Jake Smith, the Dean of Residence Life, assembled all of the RAs in the gym and talked us through the practical side of supporting students. We were asked to hold floor meetings that night and provide opportunities for students to process their feelings and pray together. At some point in the day, they set up TVs in a few strategic places so people could watch the news coverage. Most students didn’t have TVs in their room, and many people didn’t own laptops or cell phones.
“It was significant to experience 9/11 living in a downtown area; the city felt vulnerable in a way that my hometown of 25,000 people did not. Also, being in my final year of college in a Christian community provided a fairly high level of emotional safety and comfort; I could process the events of 9/11 with people I knew well and trusted. I was on the brink of independent adulthood, and the landscape changed suddenly and irrevocably on that September day.”
Kristi Hedstrom ’02, M.A., is the Mentor Program Manager at Minnesota Adult & Teen Challenge. She was a senior and Resident Advisor at NCU on 9/11/2001.
STAFF PERSPECTIVES
Paul Hurckman ’96
“We were just getting back to campus from early soccer practice, and as I was opening the door to Carlson Hall, someone said, ‘Did you hear we’re under attack? New York is under attack!’
“I immediately remembered we had a student from New York—a freshman—and I remember thinking, ‘I’ve got to find that student.’ I remember that thought as clear as day.
“For me, the whole day seemed to go slow and very purposeful. It didn’t feel like chaos; it felt like if there’s any reason why NCU exists, it’s for these moments, these purposeful moments to connect—to have something anchoring through chaotic moments for students. And that’s why thinking, first of all, about finding our students from New York and New Jersey and finding out how they were doing seemed like the most important thing.
“The second thing I remember was meeting with our Student Development teams, specifically our residence hall team. What programming or what support would we need? Not just that day but moving forward.
“I remember, as always, it seems like North Central shines its brightest in chapel. I just remember that being very healing of kind of a moment of unity.
“Dr. [Gordon] Anderson and Dave Pedde were always the voice of wisdom, calm, perspective, and spiritual insight. Those two men, I believe, in that season led us so well.
“What’s different about North Central was that, unlike other college campuses, we were in a major city, and it seemed like major cities were under attack. It seemed there was a level of unknown meets resolve. And it felt to me like the student body knew we were supposed to be here. I have always felt that North Central students not only choose to be here but also believe it’s where they are supposed to be. An on that day, there was a ‘for such a time as this’ feeling. There’s a purpose in where we are and why we are. I think the Spirit equips our students to be discerning about what it means on a higher level than just ‘what does this have to do with me?’
“But we certainly didn’t know that all of our lives would be changed forever. Because of 9/11, it just changed who we were in the world.”
Paul Hurckman ’96, M.A., is Executive Director of Venture. He was the Carlson Hall Resident Director and an assistant men’s soccer coach on 9/11/2001.
Chris Woelfle ’00
“I was still at home in my apartment near the NCU campus getting ready for the workday when I received a phone call from a colleague in the Student Development Office telling me to turn on the news because there had been a plane crash in New York City. I remember thinking about an old news story of a plane crashing into the Empire State Building in the 1930s and believed the crash in the World Trade Center could have been an accident. I started following the coverage immediately. At the point when I tuned in, only one plane had crashed into the World Trade Center; then, I watched the second plane impact into the second tower in real-time. At that point, I realized this was something planned and intentional, not just a terrible accident.
“My most vivid memories are from the morning, watching the coverage live as the attacks on New York, the Pentagon, and the plane crash in Pennsylvania unfolded. I remember the severity of the moment was driven home to me as I learned all flights over United States airspace were being forced to land—something so drastic and unprecedented. The threat to public safety became very real and close to home when buildings in downtown Minneapolis—including the IDS Center—were evacuated as a precaution because no one knew how widespread the plans of the yet unknown attackers were. I remember looking out my apartment window—with a view toward the Minneapolis skyline—and crying out to the Lord for help.
“As the news from the morning settled on us, NCU leaders called a gathering for prayer later in the day. It was comforting and strengthening to gather with this community of believers for prayer and mutual support.
“In the days that followed the attacks, a 24-hour prayer vigil was held on the Carlson Hall Patio. All members of the NCU community were welcome to come and go as their schedule allowed.
“Much has been said about the enduring impact of the 9/11 attacks on all aspects of American life, and things really did change all around us. Our world was forever changed by the events of that one day.”
Chris Woelfle ’00, M.A., is currently the Carlson Hall Resident Director at North Central University. He was serving as the Housing Coordinator on 9/11/2001.
FACULTY PERSPECTIVES
Amy Anderson
“I was teaching at 8:00, and I heard about it before I went to class—that a plane had flown into the World Trade Center. I think I imagined a smaller airplane—not long before that, some small plane that had run into some building and kind of hung right there. That was in my head.
“I went to class and taught as usual and didn’t say a thing to them at the start, and I don’t think any of them knew about it; I did say something to the students as the class was ending. I walked back to my office and, from the hallway, heard the news playing on a TV in another faculty member’s office. I walked in right after the second plane hit. I heard someone say, ‘There’s been another one!’
“And then I started to think, ‘Oh, this is not just a little plane that flew into the side of the building. Something bigger is happening here.’ It became evident at that point that something terrible and dangerous and ominous was happening.
“They set up TVs in the hallways so that students could sort of pull chairs around and watch in the hallways. I don’t remember a lot of panic or crying, but nobody was taking it lightly either. It was just sort of a solemness instead.
And that from that day, besides going in that faculty member’s office, the thing that is sticks in my head the most is that as they were replaying the second plane crashing, I kept thinking, ‘It looks like a movie.’ We’ve all seen these disaster movies, but they aren’t real. And so it was hard to accept that it was really happening.”
Amy Anderson, Ph.D., is a retired North Central University faculty member. She was Professor of New Testament Studies on 9/11/2001.
David Pedde ’85
“I was driving to work when I first heard the news on the radio that it appeared that a small plane had hit one of the World Trade Center buildings. Of course, I found out differently once I arrived at NCU. A TV was on in one of the administrator’s offices, and several of us watched together in shock.
“I remember thinking that we should gather for prayer. I walked over to the Sanctuary to find several students sitting quietly and praying in small groups together. I was amazed over the next hour as they just kept filing in. The most natural thing for everyone to do was simply pray, which we did together for several hours that day. Public and private prayer continued for the next few days.
“I was struck by the compassion shown one to another throughout this time. I also loved that students prayed without any prompting from faculty or administration—it seemed the most natural thing for them to do. They cried out to God on behalf of the nation and the world.”
David Pedde ’85, D.W.S., is Director of the Center for Worship Arts at Bluefield College. He was Composer in Residence/Assistant Professor of Music on 9/11/2001.
PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE
Dr. Gordon Anderson
“I made it a point to be present and visible on campus so the students could see that I was there, that I was concerned, but confident all would turn out okay as the country responded to the attacks. Confidence creates confidence, and fear breeds more fear. We prayed, publicly, for our country and leaders.
“We wanted the students to feel comforted and safe. I especially did not want these events to be the basis for, or the beginning of explanations as to why it all happened—punishment from God, or preparation for the rapture, or the buildup to Armageddon, and things like that. I wanted the students to ground their confidence that all would be well for them in the fact that God always cares for His own—for the church, and that catastrophic events are no time to offer up conjecture that only serves to confuse or frighten believers, especially young students.
“We convened faculty and staff and encouraged them to avoid panicking about what had happened. We decided not to cancel classes, believing that doing so would only increase the fear and confusion that everyone was feeling at the time. We maintained a regular schedule and communicated regularly, and briefly—mostly in chapel—about the developments in the aftermath of 9/11.
“I emphasized that God is always in control and the Kingdom is always victorious, even in the middle of tragedies. We do not often know why things like this happen, and we don’t need to. We need to know that God is mindful of us and is always taking care of us. That is the spiritual, or faith side of the pragmatic decisions we made.
“Our faith rests in knowing God, not knowing the how, what, or why of world events. This kind of faith is not shaken when all the efforts to understand the why of it completely fail. This is the kind of faith that lasts for a lifetime, not just for the occasional catastrophic event. So, things were peaceful and calm in spite of the 9/11 tragedy. Peace in the storm, safety on the rock. Hope for tomorrow. Assurance that nothing can separate us from the love and care of God.”
Gordon Anderson, Ph.D., served as North Central University president from 1995–2017. He is now retired and lives in Washington state.
PRAYERS ON THIS DAY
We remember those who lost their lives because of the attacks, and we pray for their loved ones and our nation on this solemn anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001.
