10 Years Later
The tragic events of 9/11 affected St. Francis College in a number of ways: We lost alumni, friends, and
family even as we watched several graduates play leadership roles in the response and recovery operations.
T
hirteen St. Francis students or
graduates died at Ground Zero.
They were either at work that day
or first responders trying to help victims.
What’s notable is that a significant
part of the leadership that headed the
recovery was made up of St. Francis alumni.
Thomas Von Essen ’72 , now International
Spokesperson for Honeywell Corporation’s
Mass Notification and Emergency
Communication Technology, was FDNY
Commissioner at the time.
“Seeing how people helped each other
and were sincerely concerned over the welfare
of strangers was remarkable. It lasted for
months and I believe made a significant
difference for those most adversely affected.
Moral, emotional and physical support
was critical at that time. When people,
even strangers, suffer real tragedy, we have
shown, not just New Yorkers, but Americans,
that we care and want to help,” he said.
One of Mr. Von Essen’s first steps in
rebuilding the department was the day after
the attacks: He hired fellow St. Francis
graduate Michael J. Regan ’80 to become
First Deputy Fire Commissioner.
Mr. Regan, who had previously served
five years as Deputy Fire Commissioner,
left FDNY in January of 2002 and now works
for JP Morgan Chase as the Global Director
of Security and Investigations,