Mayor William D. Tate
City of Grapevine
On the Wings of Eagles
In l607, after four months of rough and uncertain seas, the ship "Godspeed" entered Chesapeake Bay, it's compass set on a course that would bring hope, faith, and commitment to the New World. They sent out the call for others to follow. "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free." (l) The tall ships were filled with the homeless and tempest-tost, patrons of debtor prisons, indentured servants and women without a dowry, willing to marry a man they had never met, as the price of freedom. Immigrants came from many lands and many walks of life. They were a courageous people with strong principals and beliefs. These were our forefathers and foremothers. They were the root stock of America. Out of them came the creative genius of a democracy.
They settled in, fought a revolution, performed a miracle at Philadelphia, made peace with the Native Americans, and then started moving south and west in search of gold and fertile fields. They faced disease, danger, and uncertainty in hopes of a better life. With each revolution of the wheel of their wagons, they placed their trust more and more in God. When the first settlers entered the lands of Texas they headed for a place the scouts had called the three forks of the Trinity. A place located near where the clear fork, salt fork and elm fork came together. Like the Holy Trinity and its three branches, the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, the river was called the Trinity. It was here on the rich blackland prairie on which we stand that they parked their wagons and carved out of the wilderness a new beginning. Over time they and others like them across the continent helped build a great nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men and women are created equal. They overcame war, depression, poverty, crop failures and constant change, but the toughest lesson they had to learn was that the price of freedom would never be cheap.
The American eagle flies free across the land. They are a beautiful and handsome creature. They mate for life. They build their nest in the tallest tree or upon the highest mountain peak, where they are challenged everyday by the sun or wind, or rain or snow. They travel great distances hunting and searching for food. They have the keenest of sight. They soar high above the forest floors and prairies below. At close range they look fierce, powerful and proud. They are strong, bold and courageous. They are majestic and graceful in flight. The eagle has served as a symbol of strength and courage since ancient times. The eagle is the emblem of America.
As the young nation grew into maturity, Orville and Wilbur Wright showed the world that man could fly. By l9l4 airplanes became one of the more valuable implements of World War I. After the war the U. S. Government found a peacetime service for the airplane and private carriers --- the delivery of the mails. In April of l926 the predecessors of United and American Airlines launched air mail service in the United States. A few passengers were allowed to go along with these early mail planes, which were flimsy and cramped, but the passengers had to provide for themselves. Pilots were too busy dealing with weather problems and mapping out routes to deal with the concerns of passengers. As a result of their romantic ventures, a commercial airline pilot has become one of our foremost occupations and something that young boys and girls dream of becoming when they grow up.
In l930, Boeing Air Transport, one of United's predecessor subsidiaries began an experiment that launched a career that millions of airline passengers would come to consider fundamental. A nurse by the name of Ellen Church became the world's first stewardess, serving coffee and sandwiches to passengers. Today worldwide over 300,000 men and women work as flight attendants and United Airlines has grown into one of the largest U.S. carriers. The eagle is the emblem of United Airlines.
In the early l930s various young aviation companies, including Robertson Aircraft Corporation of Missouri merged to become American Airways, Inc. which later became American Airlines. In l957 it opened the first special facility for training flight attendants in Fort Worth. American has grown into the largest U.S. carrier. The eagle is the emblem of American Airlines.
On September ll, 200l the world awoke in shock to learn that terrorists had highjacked four commercial passenger jets over the skies of America. Millions watched on T. V. as these terrorists marked their targets. The courageous members of the flight crews, attacked by pepper spray and box cutters, were among the first to die on that historic day. It sent shock waves around the globe. The attacks underscored the importance of aviation to the world. The impact on freight, on travel, on delivery of mail, on hotels and recreation, on rent a cars and other businesses was overwhelming. There were feelings of guilt, anger and resentment. Like the death of a president the nation came to a stop to mourn and to reflect. There was a sense of change in the world. A void that would never be filled. Many writers have tried to capture in poetry and prose the emotions of that day, the intense grief, the loneliness, the sense of loss, the death of fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters.
Like falling off a horse, they say the best thing to do to overcome your fear, is to get back on again. After four days of planeless skies, the surviving flight crews, with commitment and resolve, did just that, they went back to work. They climbed back on the planes, not knowing what the future would bring, and they led America away from the brink of disaster. They got us off our knees. We should all find comfort in the ancient words of Isaiah, "Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint". (2)
When the storm hits, the eagle sets its wings so the wind will pick it up and lift it above the storm. We all must face storms in our lives. But like eagles we must rise above the storm. We must continue to fly commercially and to trust those that have committed their lives to protect us. As a result of the courage of the flight crews, and the security checks, people feel safe on airplanes again, and they should. It is still the fastest and safest form of transportation. The teaching of young children the lessons of 9/ll has been a part of healing. Being alert, on guard, and overprotective, are resolves that we must never neglect again.
Our freedom has been challenged many times before, at Concord Bridge and the Boston Commons, on the hallowed grounds of Gettysburg, on the battleships at Pearl Harbor, on the beaches of Normandy and the shores of Tripoli, in the jungles of Korea and the rice fields of Vietnam, in the skyscrapers of New York and in the Pentagon in Washington, in the mountains of Afghanistan and the desert sands of Iraq, but our flag still stands for freedom. We refuse to be defeated.
The Psalmist said, "For look, the wicked bend their bows; they set their arrows against the strings to shoot from the shadows at the upright in heart. When the foundations are being destroyed what can the righteous do?"(3) In America we begin by honoring our heroes. Life is filled with sadness, the pain of death, of growing old, the end of a relationship. But we must fill our lives with love, hope and happiness.
Today we not only celebrate the birthday of our nation, we dedicate this memorial to the courage of the flight crews, to their glorious memories and to the comfort of their families, many of which are here today. On the wings of eagles, they rode to their final destiny. They gave what Lincoln would have called, ..."their last full measure of devotion." (4) They have made us all very proud. They are American heroes. Soon this monument will belong to the American people. Thanks to those who conceived, designed and built it, those who supported it with their dimes and nickels, that we may never forget.
The sacrifices of the flight crews in the hands of terrorists remind us that the lives of the wicked are worthless, like chaff that blows away in the slightest wind. But the lives of the courageous are very valuable, like the strings of a harp that plays melodies forever. Their names will be carved in stone, and their deeds will become immortal.
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Footnotes:
(l) From the poem "The New Colossus" by Emma Lazarus
(2) Psalms ll:2
(3) Isaiah 40:30-3l
(4) From Lincoln's Gettysburg Address