Our Lives after September “9-11”

Bringing a sense of gratitude to all we serve. By: Bruce & Charlene Weaver, Owners of AAging Better In-Home Care

The day that the Twin Towers in New York fell from a terrorist attack, we were living and working in the Washington D.C. area. Bruce was stationed at the Air Force Surgeon General’s office at Bolling AFB, and Charlene was working as the Executive Chief Nurse at Georgetown University’s medical complex in Ballston. Charlene didn’t do her usual commute into D.C. that morning from where we lived in Fairfax, Virginia, because she had to have blood drawn at Bolling AFB, which is located just southeast of the D.C. area. In order to go back west to Ballston and her office after leaving the base, she had to take the southern section of the Beltway across the Potomoc River and then drive north on an intersecting freeway that took her directly around the Pentagon and on to Ballston shortly thereafter.

Ten minutes after driving by the Pentagon, the third plane involved in the terrorist attacks flew low over the section of freeway she had just driven by, causing cars to swerve into one another which resulted in a massive pile-up at that busy time of morning. The aircraft went on to strike the outer “E-ring” of the Pentagon, killing 184 active duty and civilian individuals working in that section. The plane came in at such a low angle in order to hit the building that it skimmed just above the freeway, knocking four or five light posts into the oncoming lanes of traffic. These obstacles resulted in a number of additional deaths on the freeway that morning, deaths that were never included in the statistics of attack victims. Perhaps they should have been.

Charlene counts herself fortunate that she drove by the Pentagon minutes before the plane flew into it and is here today to share her “9-11” story. Bruce is just as fortunate. Over his three years at the Air Force Surgeon General’s office, he had to walk through that section of the E-ring many, many times in order to attend meetings at the Pentagon. He could just as easily have been walking by again when the plane hit and been listed as one of the active duty officers lost in the line of duty to a terrorist attack.

Being there during the panic and hysteria that gripped the D.C. area immediately following the attacks, we both decided we would never again take for granted the time we have together and to bring that sense of gratitude to our family, friends and all those we now serve in our in-home care business.

Providing home care to veterans, their spouses and north Idaho residents has been one of the most important privileges we’ve ever had. Our clients have ranged from disabled infants needing around-the-clock nursing care at home to a 102-year-old lady that our caregivers helped bath and dress and feed in the comfort of her own home during the ten years we provided her care. The number of wonderful clients and caregivers we’ve had over the years has been a blessing and as we reflect back to that September 11th in Washington D.C., we both give thanks for being unharmed and for the wonderful communities in north Idaho we’ve been able to serve over the past 11 years.

Bruce Weaver is a retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and practiced in Emergency Departments and Family Practice Clinics across the country as a certified Physician Assistant (PA-C) for 20 years. During his last nine years on active duty, he was asked to implement and manage the Air Force’s Health Promotion program for all active duty and dependents, finishing his career at the Air Force Surgeon General’s office in Washington D.C. as Chief, Health Promotion and Population Health. He currently owns and manages one of the largest in-home care agencies in north Idaho with his wife, Charlene, who is an advanced practice RN.”

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