Todd Beamer, 32, died Sept. 11 as a passenger of hijacked United Airlines Flight 93. He sacrificed his life for the good of his country, possibly saving the lives of thousands in the process.
By: Casha Caponegro
Small American flags are lined up along the curb of Cubberly Court, where each mailbox is covered with a black cloth, indicating the residents of the neighborhood are in mourning.
However, they are not merely mourning the loss of a neighbor and human being. They are mourning the loss of a hero who sacrificed his life for the good of his country, possibly saving the lives of thousands in the process.
Todd Beamer, 32, died Sept. 11 as a passenger of hijacked United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed in Somerset County, Pa.
Recent evidence suggests that Mr. Beamer did not face death without a struggle. According to a GTE supervisor who talked to him for 13 minutes before his plane crashed, Mr. Beamer may have been one of a group of passengers who fought with the terrorists, causing the plane to crash before reaching its intended target.
At 9:45 a.m., Mr. Beamer talked to GTE supervisor Lisa D. Jefferson, to report that his plane had been hijacked by three terrorists armed with knives and bomb tied to one of their midsections with a red belt.
Mr. Beamer said he had been forced into the back of the coach section of the plane with 26 other passengers. The 10 other passengers were herded toward the front of the plane in the first-class section.
Toward the end of his conversation with Ms. Jefferson, Mr. Beamer said he and some of the other passengers had decided to "jump on" the terrorist wearing the bomb.
In the midst of the commotion and chaos that ensued after this decision, Mr. Beamer asked Ms. Jefferson to recite The Lord’s Prayer with him and, before he dropped the phone, made her promise to contact his family.
Ms. Jefferson later told Ms. Beamer that the last words her husband said before the line went silent were, "Are you ready guys? Let’s roll!"
United Airline Flight 93 crashed at 9:58 a.m. in a remote strip mine area about 80 miles outside of Pittsburgh, Pa.
Ms. Beamer is confident that her husband was instrumental in thwarting the terrorists from completing their plan.
"I know he was involved," said Ms. Beamer, who is expecting her third child in January. "He would not just sit by and let people get hurt. I know he would be looking for God’s guidance for what to do."
An account manager for Oracle Inc., Mr. Beamer was traveling to meet with clients and other executives at the Oracle headquarters in Redwood Shores, Calif.
"He traveled a lot for his job," said Ms. Beamer. "Usually a couple of times a month."
Ms. Beamer was doing various chores around the house without the television on last Tuesday morning, oblivious to the crisis facing the nation at the time.
A friend called her to inform her about two planes that struck the World Trade Center and asked if Todd was all right.
"I figured that he was fine," said Ms. Beamer. "He always was."
When she found out about the plane that crashed outside of Pittsburgh, however, Ms. Beamer said a bad feeling came over her.
"I was thinking to myself, ‘Oh no.’ I knew it was the area he would have been in at the time," she said. "I just knew that it was his flight."
When the airline called a few hours later to confirm that her husband was on the ill-fated flight, Ms. Beamer said she had already faced the awful fact that her husband would not be coming home.
"It was not too traumatic when I got that call because I was prepared," she said.
Ms. Beamer was not aware of the role her husband played in thwarting the terrorists until Saturday morning, when she received a call from Ms. Jefferson, explaining Mr. Beamer’s actions in the minutes before his death.
"I never thought I would hear from him again," said Ms. Beamer. "It was amazing to hear directly from the last person who spoke to Todd. It answers for me some of the questions about what happened to him in his last minutes and is a great statement of his character and courage."
On Monday, Ms. Beamer traveled to Pennsylvania with family members for a memorial service honoring the passengers of Flight 93.
"I’m glad I got to go," said Ms. Beamer, who described the crash site as a beautiful, serene meadow. "It gave me a clear visual of what happened. Maybe this peaceful meadow, I hope, was the last thing he saw."
One of the most difficult tasks Ms. Beamer had to face during this tragedy is explaining her husband’s death to her 3-year-old son, David. Her younger son, Andrew, is1.
"I sat my older son down and told him what happened and tried to explain to him what death is," she said. "The best thing about this whole event is they will have tangible evidence of who their dad was and the faith and character he had."
Ms. Beamer said it is her own strong sense of faith that has kept her going during the last week.
"Knowing that he is in heaven and I will see him some day is my encouragement, but it doesn’t make my days any easier," she said. "Everyday I lose it one, two or 10 times, thinking of all we lost. I always come back to my faith and the knowledge that I will see him again."
Ms. Beamer met her husband when they attended Wheaton College, near Chicago. Her younger brother, Paul Brosious, also attended Wheaton College and played baseball with her husband.
Mr. Brosious was confident that his brother-in-law was one of the men who fought the hijackers prior to the plane’s crash.
"When we played baseball together he always had a game plan," said Mr. Brosious. "He was very calculated in what he would do and observant. He went about following his plan and always succeeded. I can see him on that plane just like in baseball, sizing up the situation."
Mr. Beamer was a member of the Princeton Alliance Church, where he acted as a youth group sponsor.
"It was important for him to help others maintain a strong faith," Ms. Beamer said. "He loved mentoring kids. He really bonded with them and earned their trust."
A memorial service was held at the Princeton Alliance Church on Sunday. The service was attended by many friends and family, as well as government officials wishing to pay tribute to a man they call a national hero.
"Throughout history America has been a country of ordinary people doing extraordinary things," said U.S. Rep. Rush Holt, who attended Sunday’s service. "In that sense, Todd is an example for everyone because all Americans have a chance to show courage in standing up for American values."
Mayor Michael Mayes spoke about Mr. Beamer during his remarks at Monday night’s committee meeting.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with Lisa Beamer and her young family," Mayor Mayes said. "We remember Todd as a loving husband and father and a true American hero whose selfless actions undoubtedly saved the lives of thousands."
Also on Monday night, Bob Virgadamo of the Cranbury Lions Club announced the group plans to erect a memorial to Mr. Beamer, "a true and bonafide modern-day American hero," at Memorial Park.
Ms. Beamer said she was overwhelmed by the news of the memorial.
"I am proud that his memory will be kept alive that way," she said. "It is another tangible thing for me to show my boys who their father was and what he did for his country."
The Lions Club has not announced the exact nature of this memorial as of yet. Anyone wishing to send donations may mail them to the Cranbury Lions, PO Box 365, Cranbury, N.J. 08512.
TODD BEAMER
Todd Beamer, 32, died Tuesday, Sept. 11, in a plane crash outside of Pittsburgh, Pa.
Born in Flint, Mich., he lived in Hightstown five years before moving to Cranbury.
Mr. Beamer was an account manager at Oracle Corp. the past seven years.
He attended Wheaton Christian High School in Illinois and graduated from Los Gatos High School in California in 1987. He received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Wheaton College in 1991 and a master’s degree in business administration in 1993 from DePaul University in Chicago.
He was a member of Princeton Alliance Church in Plainsboro, serving as a volunteer youth sponsor and mentor to high school students since 1994. He also taught senior high school Christian education classes several years and was a member of the church’s men’s softball team.
An avid athlete, he played basketball, baseball and soccer and was a fan of the Chicago Cubs, Bulls and Bears.
mother and father, David L. and Peggy Beamer of Potomac, Md.; sisters Melissa Beamer Wilson of Trenton, Mich., and Michele Beamer of Arlington, Va.; paternal grandparents John and Wanda Beamer of Littleton, N.C.; maternal grandfather George Jackson of Indiana; and nieces Megan, Abby and Katie Wilson.
A memorial service was held Sunday.
Memorial contributions may be made to PAC-Beamer Memorial Fund, in care of Princeton Alliance Church, P.O. Box 9000, Plainsboro, NJ 08536. Call Bill Beatty at (908) 244-4074 for further information.
Arrangements are by The Mather-Hodge Funeral Home in Princeton.