Your son is OK

By Steven H. Thompson: I had just finished a diving job at the Elmcrest Country Club and had heard about the attack when I received a call that my son was OK.

His office at the Pentagon had been destroyed, but he had just left it a minute before and was in a hallway and was not injured. He had found a working phone and called us and left a message saying, "This is your son. I'm OK. I'll talk to you later."

He called later in the afternoon, asking what we were hearing about the attacks. He was on the Pentagon lawn with others, but they were getting no details about what was happening.

We found out later that he and another Naval officer had helped others escape the building and fought fires. They were awarded medals for their actions.