PATRIOT DAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2026
By Don Hickman - 28 August 2026
Lest we forget—2,977 innocent lives were taken on September 11, 2001. America went to war that day, against an amorphous enemy who hated us for who we are and what we represent.
Twenty-five years ago, I was an Air Force Major on the Pentagon’s Air Staff, serving as the counter-chemical, biological, and radiological terrorism war planner. My team and I were in a classified facility in Washington, D.C., watching the news as the World Trade Center North Tower burned. Then, live on TV, United Flight 175 struck the South Tower.
Thirty-four minutes later, American Flight 77 struck the Pentagon, and we heard the explosion even in our secure facility. We stepped outside and saw smoke rising above that gigantic building. Soon came the word that United Flight 93 had crashed in Pennsylvania.
It was clear to us - this was our Pearl Harbor moment. America had been attacked, and we were at war.
After the initial shock, I called Stacey, as she was getting our one-year-old ready for a post-surgery follow-up at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. I remember confusion when she asked why I said don’t leave the house, and these words I said to her:
“Turn on the TV. We’ve been attacked and are going to war. I’m OK. I love you the two of you. Call the family and tell them I’m alive and OK. I don’t know when I’ll be home. Don’t leave the house until I let you know it’s safe.”
It would be four days before I got home.
The planning staff returned to the Pentagon a few days after the attack. The smell of aviation fuel and acrid smoke permeated the building. I’ll never forget the smell and what it represented.
Over the months that followed Stacey bore the heavy burden at home while I worked 18+-hour days on the Air Force Crisis Action Team, protecting the homeland and ensuring our warfighters had what they needed to carry the fight to al-Qaeda - across Afghanistan, the Arabian Peninsula, Asia, and Africa.
September 11, now known as Patriot Day, is very personal for me. In addition to my first-hand experience in the Pentagon, my friend and U.S. Air Force Academy classmate, Leroy Homer, was the First Officer of United Flight 93. He was murdered in the cockpit as terrorists seized the plane.
The other 2,976 victims came from across the United States and 90 other countries - from every walk of life, every political party, every race, every religion, and every creed. I lament that it took the tragedy of 9/11 to unite us - and that today, as a nation, and to a certain extent our Valley, we are again so divided.
Today we remember. We reflect. Together, let's unite and create our future Ogden Valley.
Note: Don Hickman retired as a Colonel from the Air Force in 2012 with over 25 years of active-duty service. As a City Council member, he represents District 5 and serves as Mayor Pro Tempore. Over the past eight months, he has administered Public Works and Engineering while also co-chairing the Agriculture Committee.
By Don Hickman - 28 August 2026
Lest we forget—2,977 innocent lives were taken on September 11, 2001. America went to war that day, against an amorphous enemy who hated us for who we are and what we represent.
Twenty-five years ago, I was an Air Force Major on the Pentagon’s Air Staff, serving as the counter-chemical, biological, and radiological terrorism war planner. My team and I were in a classified facility in Washington, D.C., watching the news as the World Trade Center North Tower burned. Then, live on TV, United Flight 175 struck the South Tower.
Thirty-four minutes later, American Flight 77 struck the Pentagon, and we heard the explosion even in our secure facility. We stepped outside and saw smoke rising above that gigantic building. Soon came the word that United Flight 93 had crashed in Pennsylvania.
It was clear to us - this was our Pearl Harbor moment. America had been attacked, and we were at war.
After the initial shock, I called Stacey, as she was getting our one-year-old ready for a post-surgery follow-up at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. I remember confusion when she asked why I said don’t leave the house, and these words I said to her:
“Turn on the TV. We’ve been attacked and are going to war. I’m OK. I love you the two of you. Call the family and tell them I’m alive and OK. I don’t know when I’ll be home. Don’t leave the house until I let you know it’s safe.”
It would be four days before I got home.
The planning staff returned to the Pentagon a few days after the attack. The smell of aviation fuel and acrid smoke permeated the building. I’ll never forget the smell and what it represented.
Over the months that followed Stacey bore the heavy burden at home while I worked 18+-hour days on the Air Force Crisis Action Team, protecting the homeland and ensuring our warfighters had what they needed to carry the fight to al-Qaeda - across Afghanistan, the Arabian Peninsula, Asia, and Africa.
September 11, now known as Patriot Day, is very personal for me. In addition to my first-hand experience in the Pentagon, my friend and U.S. Air Force Academy classmate, Leroy Homer, was the First Officer of United Flight 93. He was murdered in the cockpit as terrorists seized the plane.
The other 2,976 victims came from across the United States and 90 other countries - from every walk of life, every political party, every race, every religion, and every creed. I lament that it took the tragedy of 9/11 to unite us - and that today, as a nation, and to a certain extent our Valley, we are again so divided.
Today we remember. We reflect. Together, let's unite and create our future Ogden Valley.
Note: Don Hickman retired as a Colonel from the Air Force in 2012 with over 25 years of active-duty service. As a City Council member, he represents District 5 and serves as Mayor Pro Tempore. Over the past eight months, he has administered Public Works and Engineering while also co-chairing the Agriculture Committee.