According to U.S. News and World Report, there are 103 million Americans who were born after 911. This figure has been repeated by local news outlets regularly this week as we reflect on the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that stole 2,977 lives in New York, Virginia, and Pennsylvania.
Our job as those who remember it is to educate others.
Today’s lesson is about leadership through adversity.
Several Bay Area residents were among those aboard United Flight 93, which crashed in Pennsylvania. They were on the plane that crashed in Pennslvania. Over the years, I’ve written about Tom Burnett, who attended church where I go today, and Todd Beamer, who uttered the famous “Let’s Roll!” while he and his brave comrades fought the terrorists, likely preventing an attack on the U.S. Capitol.
I don’t recall ever writing about Mark Bingham—but an article by the very talented Julia Prodis Sulek caught my eye today and inspired me.
Mark was among those who lost his life on Flight 93 and his mother, Alice Hoagland, has been outspoken about the terrorist attacks that took her son.
The article is an in-depth look at Mark’s global legacy — he was a part of the first gay-inclusive rugby team on the West Coast and his legacy led to international acceptance and the Bingham Cup—an international celebration.
Here’s a quote in today’s East Bay Times article from Mark’s Mom, Alice Hoagland —
“When Mark boarded that flight, he had no idea that in an hour he’d be standing shoulder to shoulder with a bunch of straight guys — one of them a wrestler, another a college quarterback, and a couple of rugby players, and they ran forward against all odds,” Hoagland told the crowd at the 2010 Bingham Cup in Minneapolis. “With about 10 minutes of preparation and a lot of determination and a lot of competitive sports under their belt, (they) made a big difference for America that day. And you all are carrying forward that tradition of pride and strength. And I’m so proud of you.”
What struck me about the article was this repeated theme that reminded me of another great American hero –
“Mark’s thing wasn’t that he was a gay rugby player. Mark’s thing was that he happened to be gay.”
For 30 years I worked for and stayed in touch with another great American hero—Bob Dole. The man tried to make a difference each day of his life and do something good for another human being. His daughter, Robin Dole, reiterated this point at his funeral.
And the thing I remember most about making a difference was that Bob Dole went to work in the U.S. Senate every day—not as a man with a disability, but as the U.S. Senate Leader who bore the wounds of WWII. He was one of the most consequential leaders of our country who happened to be disabled.
The lesson here as we look back isn’t whether you are gay or disabled. It’s how you choose to live, use your power to help others and make a difference.
For those 103 million Americans born after 9/11, there are many lessons to be learned about the goodness of people, the evil of terrorism, and acceptance—no matter what you are or who you are.
It’s about role models and people who make a difference every day. Mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, sons, daughters—people of all colors, religions, and political parties.
Bob Dole and Mark Bingham were two of those people and though they are no longer with us, their legacies live on—not in spite of—but because of what they chose to do to help others.
Judy Lloyd is a former Presidential appointee of the Reagan and Bush 43 Administrations who worked on Capitol Hill. She is a small business leader in California and host of the Purple Inspiration Podcast—designed to bring people together, featuring women of extraordinary talent and influence.
In 2015, she was a fall fellow at the Dole Institute of Politics and recently interviewed its director, Audrey Coleman. Make a contribution to support the work of the Dole Institute of Politics here.