The Journal
MARTINS BURG, W.Va. – America lost a lot on Sept. 11, 2001, but for some local veterans, the loss hits closer to home.
“That was a bad day,” said Frank Barna, a Vietnam Marine Corps veteran. “I was supposed to go on a trip with my buddy who worked in one of the towers on the fourth floor, but we never got to go. I’m afraid it will happen again.”
Barna’s initial feelings were indicative of the national response immediately following the news of the attacks.
“I wanted revenge. A lot of us did,” Barna said. “We wanted to kill them all. We knew it was from the Middle East.”
With time to reflect and heal, Barna’s opinion has changed.
“I now know it was wrong to want to kill everyone,” Barna said. “After everyone calmed down and collected their thoughts, you can’t just bomb a whole country because of an individual or group.”
The country has now had time to learn to be ready for such events.
“It was a bad day and we shouldn’t allow it to happen again,” Barna said. “I don’t think we should let our guard down.”
Tommy Moran, a 20-year service veteran, shared similar sentiments.
“During 9/11, I was at work in Leesburg and thought, ‘Well, this is going to change everything,'” Moran said. “It wasn’t two months later and I was deployed to Fort Benning, Georgia. I ended up back in Iraq in 2003.”
Moran had served in Operation Desert Storm and spent 12 years in the Army, transitioning to the National Guard shortly before the attacks.
“I thought I’d never go back. I couldn’t believe it,” Moran said. “It felt like something was eventually going to happen. I’ve been to those countries and just the way people are towards each other, I felt like something was going to happen.”
Unlike Barna, however, Moran’s feelings have remained unchanged since the attacks.
“I haven’t changed my mind since,” Moran said. “I think it’ll always exist. Once ISIS is knocked down, something else will pop up. In my opinion, we’ll always be fighting them, here or there. We’re the infidels.”
Moran also believes we haven’t learned anything.
“I don’t think we’ve learned anything,” Moran said. “It’s something that is always going to exist.”
Ron Hughes, an 18-year Coast Guard veteran, was shocked on 9/11.
“I was in St. Petersburg, Florida at the time when I heard the news,” Hughes said. “I couldn’t believe what had happened. Was it true?”
Hughes said it’s important to remember those lost that day.
“It was such a great loss. So many innocent people died, so many first responders,” Hughes said. “And we are still fighting the same war we fought 15 years ago and we’re just waiting for it to happen again.”
Hughes’ feelings regarding Sept. 11 have since grown stronger.
“I feel stronger about it now because my son is a paramedic firefighter,” Hughes said. “I worry about him and all our first responders.”
Hughes is pessimistic the country has learned anything from the events.
“I think we didn’t learn anything from it at all,” Hughes said. “That question needs to be addressed to our local officials.”
Staff writer Matt Dellinger can be reached at 304-263-3381, ext. 128, or www.twitter.com/MattDellJN.