“This is heartbreaking. Each year on the anniversary of my son’s death, we hold a small memorial for him. Last night, I had a confrontation with our neighbors, a husband and a wife, on our street, who threatened to ‘report’ us if we do our memorial this year.”
‘Unsafe and idiotic,’ is how they described it. I was hurt. I cried heavy tears all night. This neighborhood has been such a safe space for me since my son died. Evil will not win.’
‘Amber, you need to listen to me. You need to stay in the car.’ I opened his phone and saw the message. ‘Truck is down.’ That was their name for my husband. ‘Get Kyle!,’ I screamed.’
“This is where my feelings for Kyle began to change. Shortly after we decided to tell people we were together, we had a little surprise of our own. Kyle and I found out I was pregnant.”
‘During a regular, boring trip to the grocery store at 26-weeks pregnant, I went into labor. We rushed to the hospital. The NICU doctor had to ‘speak with us.’ My heart broke all over again.’
“At first, my little ‘hobby’ was an outlet – a very private and personal one. We had recently endured the sudden loss of our son. It was noticed by friends – and friends of friends. I quickly realized there were so many mamas that understood.”
‘She wanted to crash a wedding, toilet paper a house and travel. I remember looking at her sitting there, thinking, ‘She will not be here much longer.’
“I will never forget the day she called me and told me. She was sorry and she didn’t understand why it was happening to her.”
‘I mustered up courage to ask where he was on 9/11. ‘The 47th floor of the North Tower’, the museum worker said.’: Young woman’s chance encounter with September 11 survivor makes her ‘proud to be an American’
“We were near the 9/11 Memorial entrance. It was POURING rain. ‘You guys come with me.’ He escorted us past the long line, past the police officers, and told the security guards, ‘These are my two friends, let them in.’ Before he left, he told us to look for him in the museum; we would find his picture and the watch he wore that fateful day. Sure enough, we did.”
HE HELD THE DOOR OPEN: Medal of Heroism awarded to JROTC cadet killed in Florida school shooting
The slain students — Peter Wang, Alaina Petty and Martin Duque — are receiving the medals for their performance during the shooting which “involved the acceptance of danger and extraordinary responsibilities.”
