By DAVID EPPS
Pastor

Todd Beamer was the All-American kind of guy that exemplifies the best about the United States. A Christian and churchman, as were his father and mother and his grandparents before him, he grew up playing sports as a young man, graduated from college, and even earned his MBA.

He was the second of three children born to his parents and the only son. His cousin, Carolyn Fjeran of Newnan, with whom he was close, described him as a "very attractive man," and a "wonderful person."

In his early 30s, Todd was married to a beautiful young woman with whom he had two children, ages 4 and 2. He was looking forward to being in the hospital with his wife during the anticipated birth of the couple's third child, due in January. Todd was looking forward to his business trip to San Francisco as he arrived at the Newark airport.

After the usual baggage checks, a routine walk through security, and a journey to the appropriate gate, Todd boarded his plane and settled into his seat for the flight across the county. Before long, United Airlines Flight 93 coasted down the runway and, at 8:01 a.m., took to the air.

Once airborne, things on board the Boeing 757 went terribly wrong. A terrified passenger called 911 from the plane's restroom and said, "We're being highjacked!" The caller said that he heard some sort of explosion and saw white smoke coming from the plane and then contact was lost.

Flight attendant CeeCee Lyles called her husband and four sons in Fort Myers, Florida to tell him how much she loved him and the boys. CeeCee's husband heard screaming in the background. Mark Bingham, 31, called his mother to say, "I love you very much. I'm calling you from the plane. We've been taken over. There are three men that say they have a bomb." The phone went dead.

Thomas Burnett called his wife, Deena and said, "I know we're all going to die. There are three of us who are going to do something about it."

Shortly after 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, September 11, about 80 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, Flight 93 slammed into the ground, killing the crew and all aboard. Todd's cousin, Carolyn, received the devastating news at work that afternoon.

"When my husband, David, told me that there had been a struggle on board and that many lives were probably saved by the plane going down before it reached it's destination, I was strangely comforted. All afternoon, I thought that I would never be able to get over this. But, somehow, knowing that Todd might have had something to do with the saving of lives by fighting the terrorists, made his sacrifice have some meaning." Carolyn said, "It would be just like Todd to do something like that."

Thursday afternoon, September 13, United Airlines transported Carolyn and her husband, and other family members to the site of the crash. United confirmed that, indeed, Todd Beamer had been one of the courageous people on board Flight 93 that had fought terrorism with their last strength and breath.

At the time of the Fjerans' departure to Pennsylvania, the destination of the hijackers was uncertain. Some speculated that Camp David was the target, while others said that the White House or the U. S. Capitol Building were just as likely. A spokesman even indicated that Atlanta may have been the target city. One thing is certain the terrorists who took control of Flight 93 intended to kill hundreds or thousands of people, if they could.

Todd's lovely wife and his parents will not be much comforted that others were surely saved as a result of the actions of these passengers. Todd's two children will not understand for years to come why daddy didn't come home last week as he always did before. His unborn child will never know his or her father, not even for a single day.

But someday, when they are older, they will understand. They will understand that their daddy fought a great evil, saved hundreds or even thousands of lives, and died in the struggle. They will understand that their father, who was just traveling to California to do his job, became both a casualty and an American hero high above the ground on one fateful day in September. They will understand that, during a terrible and dark time when great courage was necessary, their father rose to the challenge.

This understanding will eventually make them proud and warm their hearts. They will tell the story of their dad and the other heroes of Flight 93. But even such knowledge will never dull the ache that fills their hearts or stop the tears that flow down their cheeks. They never wanted their daddy to be a hero. They just wanted him to come home.

[Father David Epps is rector of Christ the King Church in Peachtree City. He may be contacted at FatherDavidEpps@aol.com or at www.ChristTheKingCEC.com.]

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