a tribute TO mark Bingham
an American hero September 11, 2001
Note: With so much focus on this the 5th Anniversary of 9/11 and with compelling movies both for TV and a feature film in circulation retelling the final hours of Mark and his fellow passengers and crew of Flight 93, my tribute is bringing back this page largely as it first appeared.:
Mar Bingham was a passenger on Flight 93 scheduled for San Francisco but bound for a fateful end in a field in Pennsylvania. It is believed this hijacked plane was being redirected to either the White House or the Capitol Building in Washington DC, redeployed as an American-made bomb piloted by terrorists bent on wide-scale destruction. By all accounts, Mark was one of a number of passengers, cognizant of what had just happened at the World Trade Center, who in an act of courage foiled these plans. The plane did not reach its target.
I knew Mark from The Lone Star, not well, but admired and respected him. We had a similar taste in men and I know his former-partner Paul better (Big Bear Hugz to you sweetie!), and the many friends we have in common. Mark was a strapping 6'5" athletic rugby player, so he literally stood out from the crowd.
I watched crying at the memorial service on television: There was Paul sitting next to Senator John McCain, of all people. Senator McCain spoke eloquently and from the heart: were it not for Mark, he might not be there that day. By stark contrast, I cannot help think with derision on our own Taliban in the name of Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, whose shallow and ugly comments represent the worst we have to offer.
At first you see the blisteringly stunning images of the Trade Towers shattering, and at first it seems so far away and surreal. And then, it all comes thundering close to home.
Rest in Peace, Mark........