On the morning of September 11, 2001, a group of second-graders at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida, witnessed a historic moment without fully understanding its gravity. Former student Krystal Davis recalls a suited man leaning in to whisper into President George W. Bush’s ear while he was seated in front of the class. At that moment, Bush’s expression shifted from one of engagement to deep concern.
White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card had privately informed the president that a second aircraft had struck the World Trade Center in New York City. “[America is under attack],” Card later recalled whispering to Bush.
Davis, now an adult working in healthcare, told ABC News that the change in the president’s demeanor was unmistakable to the children present. “You could see the shift with the president once he got the message, and then you could see it on his face,” she said. She noted that Bush quickly regained his composure, returning to a smile to avoid alarming the young students.
Mrs. Sandra Daniels, the teacher whose class hosted the president, also observed the sudden transformation. Speaking to the local affiliate WWSB, she said she “immediately knew something was wrong” and recalled that Bush’s entire demeanor changed before he was escorted out of the room.
Confusion spread among the students as the president left. “And we’re just like, ‘OK, in the middle of reading, what happened? What did we do? Like, did we do something wrong? Did he not like us reading or whatever?'” Davis remembered.
Meanwhile, Stevenson Tose’-Rigell, then 10 years old and the son of the school’s principal, had been waiting in the library for the presidential visit. The event was intended to promote Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act education policy. Tose’-Rigell recalled waiting on the podium for hours, unsure of the delay.
When Bush finally appeared, the planned speech was abandoned. Instead, the president delivered a national address confirming an apparent terrorist attack on the United States. “We’re pretty much [thinking], ‘Sounds like we’re under attack,'” Tose’-Rigell said, noting the address was far removed from the original script.
Inside the classroom, Davis and her peers were moved to another room where they watched television footage of the Twin Towers collapsing. Tose’-Rigell, unable to leave because his mother was the principal on duty, watched the devastation unfold on a small television in the school’s front office.
From Sarasota, Bush boarded Air Force One, traveling to military bases in Louisiana and Nebraska before returning to Washington, D.C., that evening. Nearly 3,000 people died in the attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
As the nation marks the 25th anniversary of the attacks, former students from Emma E. Booker Elementary continue to reflect on their unique connection to the events. In May, the school hosted a steel beam from the World Trade Center, brought by the Tunnel to Towers Foundation. Stephen Siller Jr., whose father was among the 343 FDNY firefighters killed, praised the visit as one of the most impactful stops on the foundation’s Steel Across America campaign.
“Little kids … understand that, you know, this is a sacred piece of history,” Siller Jr. said. “It once held up the Twin Towers… and now it holds the gravity of that day.”
Sarasota County Schools Superintendent Terry Connor honored the occasion in a statement, writing, “For Sarasota County Schools, the legacy of Sept. 11 carries a uniquely personal connection.”
For Davis, the experience ignited a desire to serve others, influencing her aspiration to become a police officer. “As a second grader, I couldn’t really explain,” she said. “But I would later realize my experience left me wanting to do more for my community.”
Tose’-Rigell described carrying complex emotions on the anniversary, including sadness and pride. His mother, Gwendolyn Tose’-Rigell, died of cancer in 2007. He recalled viewing her as a “superhero” after she received national recognition for her leadership during the crisis. “It feels like she comes back,” he said of watching archival footage of that day. “You know, like, once a year, [she] reincarnates right onscreen again.”
Twenty-five years feels like both an eternity and yesterday. Thanks for sharing these personal perspectives from that morning.
Does anyone else find it fascinating how children process trauma differently? Those kids clearly carried that memory for decades.
I still remember watching the towers fall on a grainy TV at home. The contrast between that classroom and our living rooms is striking.
It’s heartbreaking to think they were just second graders when all this happened. They deserved better than that chaos.