Mattie's Heartfelt Letter to Fire Fighters

Dear Fire Fighters,

One week ago, a terrible tragedy happened in this country. We were attacked by terrorists. Thousands of lives were lost. Innocent people died. Children and adults. Military people and civilians. Cleaning crews and business leaders. Mommies and daddies and spouses and neighbors and friends and many more. And so very sadly, hundreds of fire fighters who rushed bravely to try and help save the innocent people who may still have a chance to survive.

Hundreds and hundreds of fire fighters went in again and again to do anything they could to help save as many lives as possible. They must have been afraid that the buildings could fall on them. Some of the largest airplanes had crashed into some of the largest buildings and caused one of the hottest fires imaginable. But they were true heroes. Even in the smoke of the fires, we could see clearly why the USA is called the home of the brave -- look at all the members of the New York Fire Department who put their duty and other peoples' lives first.

I am especially sad because just a day and a half before this horrible event, my mom and I spent a wonderful weekend with hundreds of fire fighters who played softball for three days to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association and "Jerry's kids." One of the NYFD teams came in second place for the whole tournament. At the closing ceremonies, a player from that team handed me his trophy. I touch that trophy now, praying for all of the lost lives, remembering the generosity and bravery of the fire fighters, and wondering… is the player who handed me his trophy one of the hundreds of fire fighters who are still missing?

Now, we must go on. My philosophy in life has always been: "Remember to play after every storm." That's not always easy to do, but it is the only way life can survive. But, as life goes on, I have a prayer and a wish. My prayer and my wish are that these thousands of people and hundreds of fire fighters have not died without a lesson for our country. My prayer and my wish are that we place meaning in this great loss. My prayer and my wish are that we always remember how our country suddenly united after a tragedy, and how we all reached out to pray and help and be with our neighbors. As we go on and live and play, as we must, please let us all remember our response to this loss, and let us take that unity with us into the future.

With love and respect and appreciation,

Mattie Joseph Thaddeus Stepanek
Upper Marlboro, Maryland