09/10/2026
Tomorrow marks 25 years since September 11, 2001.
There are stories from that day we remember because of unimaginable loss. But there are also stories worth remembering because they show us something extraordinary about humanity.
One of those stories happened on the water.
As thousands of people found themselves stranded in Lower Manhattan, the U.S. Coast Guard put out a call for available boats to help with the evacuation.
And they came.
Ferries. Tugboats. Fishing boats. Tour boats. Private vessels. Captains and crews from across the region turned toward Manhattan and went where they were needed.
Again and again, they loaded people aboard, carried them to safety and went back for more.
In roughly nine hours, an extraordinary flotilla helped evacuate an estimated 500,000 people by water.
Think about that for a moment.
Different boats. Different people. Different backgrounds. Many had never met the people they were going to help.
None of that mattered.
Someone needed them, and they answered.
Twenty-five years later, as we prepare to remember the lives lost on September 11, perhaps this is a story worth carrying forward too.
In one of America's darkest hours, people showed us what humanity can look like at its very best.
The call went out. And they came.
Tomorrow, we remember.
