32 Greater Latrobe sophomores experienced the wind chill reminiscent of the chills the world felt on September 11, 2001. On October 28, History II students had the opportunity to visit the Flight 93 National Memorial as a field trip. This was the eighth year GLSH students were able to take this trip. They were led by their teachers, Mr. Basciano, Mr. Trentin, Mr. Walker, Mr. Wetzel, and Park Ranger Gregory Zaborowski. This younger generation learned about the tragedy of 9/11 so the lives that were lost continue to be commemorated. History teacher Mr. Wetzel says, “Ever since we started doing this field trip we promised to educate the students about 9/11 and we intend to honor that promise.”

Zaborowski led the students on their tour. Since 2013, Mr. Zaborowski has been at Flight 93 but has been permanently working there since 2016. He is the education specialist; he runs all educational programs including field trips for local schools and Zoom calls for students in other states and countries. Mr. Zaborowski said, “I like education and acknowledge the importance of this event, and here your classroom is a National Park.”

Zaborowski gets to tell the stories of those who can’t share their stories using their own voices. He often interacts with families who have lost loved ones. For many people, Flight 93 is more than a crash site, but a burial. “It’s a story of a mass murder, every day you talk about the people that died,” says Zaborowski. This job entails being in a depressing environment that can be detrimental to one’s mental health. The workers are required to meet with a psychologist once a year for a check-up to ensure that they are still mentally capable of this job.

This field trip connects things the students have learned in the classroom to real life. Visiting the site gives the students a whole new perspective on what they’ve been taught. Sophomore, Elana Eckenrode said, “Visiting the site and realizing it happened so close was very emotional. It’s just such a big part of our history, and it’s scary to know that we are all constantly at risk of terrorism.”

Engaging in real-world connections allows students to get involved in the content, in addition to involving themselves in the classroom. “The most important thing for our students to know is that innocent people lost their lives that day, and not just a couple of people. To me, one life gone is one too many,” said history teacher, Mr. Trentin.

The students were able to walk the shadow of the plane’s flight path and learn more about what happened on the plane before the flight crashed. Mr. Zaborowski told stories about the fight on the plane and students had the chance to listen to the phone calls made from passengers on the flight. “I thought it was really sad, especially listening to the voice calls. Knowing that they were going to die while calling their family to tell them they love them. That was really emotional for me,” says Elana.