An Army of Normal Folks - Father Mark Hanna: The 3 Civilians Who Saved Upwards of 77 Lives (Pt 2)

Episode Date: July 8, 2025

An Egyptian engineer, a Hispanic Navy Seal, and an Italian construction manager walk into a building. It sounds like the beginning of a joke, but it’s the beginning of real-life heroism. The building was the World Trade Center’s North Tower and Father Mark Hanna is the only one of the 3 amigos to survive 9/11.Support the show: https://www.normalfolks.us/premiumSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hey everybody, it's Bill Courtney with An Army of Normal Folks, and we continue now with part two of our conversation with Father Mark Hanna, right after these brief messages from our generous sponsors. From I Heart podcasts, before social media, before the internet, before cable news, there was Alan Berg. You dig what I do. You have a need. Unfortunately, you have no sense of humor.

That's why you can't ever enjoy this show. And that's why you're a loser. He was the first and the original shock shot. That scratchy, irreverent kind of way of talking to people. You're as dumb as the rest. That's, I can't take it anymore. I don't agree with you all the time. I don't want you to.

I hope that you pick me apart. His voice changed media. His death shocked the nation. And it makes me so angry that he got himself killed because he had a big mouth. KOA morning talk show host Alan Berg reportedly was shot and killed

tonight in downtown Denver. He pointed to the Denver phone book and said, well, there are probably 2 million suspects. This guy aggravated everybody. From iHeart Podcasts, this is Live Wire, the loud life and shocking murder of Alan Berg. Listen on the iHeart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A murder happens. The case goes cold.

Then, over 100 years later, we take a second look. I'm Paul Holes, a retired cold case investigator. And I'm Kate Winkler-Dawson, a journalist and historian. On our podcast, Buried Bones, we reexamine historical true crime cases. Using modern forensic techniques, we dig into what the original investigators may have missed. Growing up on a farm when I heard a gunshot, I did not immediately think murder. Unless this person went out to shoot squirrels, they're not choosing a 22 to go hunting out there.

These cases may be old, but the questions are still relevant and often chilling. I know this chauffeur is not of concern. You know, it's like, well, he's the last one who saw our life. So how did they eliminate him? Join us as we take you back to the cold cases that haunt us to this day.

New episodes every Wednesday on the Exactly Right Network. Listen to Buried Bones on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no.

Across the country, cops call this Taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that Taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season One, Taser Incorporated.

I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season One, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes one, two, and three on May 21st and episodes four, five, and six on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple podcasts. Open AI is a financial abomination, a thing that should not be an aberration, a symbol

of rot at the heart of Silicon Valley. And I'm going to tell you why on my show, Better Offline, the rudest show in the tech industry, where we're breaking down why open AI along with other AI companies are dead set on lying to your boss that they can take your job. I'm also going to be talking with the greatest minds in the industry about all the other ways the rich and powerful are ruining the computer. Listen to Better Offline on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you happen to get your podcasts. I Heart Radio Music Festival presented by Capital One is coming back to Las Vegas. Vegas!

September 19th and 20th. On your feet! Streaming live only on Hulu. Ladies and gentlemen. Brian Adams and Sheeran, Fade, Glorilla, Jelly Roll, John Fogerty, Lil Wayne, LL Cool J, Mariah Carey, Maroon 5, Sammy Hagar, Tate McRae, The Offspring, Tim McGraw. Tickets are on sale now at AXS.com. Get your tickets today. As an aside, we'll pick your story up from there.

But as an aside, you know, nine, there's a few things that happen to a nation that becomes part of that nation's collective consciousness. No matter how you worship, what color you are, how you vote, the Great Depression was a part of that generation's consciousness. Pearl Harbor was a part of that generation's consciousness. And I think 9-11 is part of that generation's consciousness. But there's a thing I fear, that there are people graduating college today that were not alive on that day. And a fear they will forget, because we can't lose consciousness the heroism, the requirement for vigilance.

What's your fear? Actually, I've been thinking about that because I cannot imagine next year is going to be 25 year anniversary for 9-11. I always, from my heart, I always remember all my good friends that day. And one of the fear actually people forget about 9-11. Is what? One of the fear in my fear actually people forget about 9-11. Is what? One of the fear in my heart actually people to forget about 9-11. Because 9-11 actually was a day, not only a sad day,

it changed the way we live our life completely. And that day when 3,000 people die, I witnessed it by myself. It makes me very sad that really what happened. But I'm hoping actually the new generation actually understand what happened. And I know that right now there are some movies coming up about helping to understand what happened to educate everybody. But 9-11 is a day for me was a new day in my life,

but also the day that changed my life completely. But also I look at 9-11 as a day that basically it changes the way all of us how we think and how we deal with everything. So I can't imagine attending 44 funerals, some of the people you don't know. I can't imagine attending your best friend's funerals with nobody. And the depression and everything. So many survivors killed. All that you dealt with. The visions of what you saw that that human beings aren't supposed to really witness. But somehow you found strength and

changed the trajectory of your own life as a result of this. Tell us what your mind went through and why you're wearing a robe. In the beginning and after 9-11, and in the moment that when I took my journey to go from New York City to my house, I live in South Brunswick, New Jersey. It was a tough journey also, by the way, because I had to walk from Walletry Center all the way to Chelsea Beer, which is the Spirit Cruise.

The Spirit, New York Spirit, Spirit of New York actually took us from, because there was no transportation, only boat you can take. So I took the boat all the way down to the Wauhoc and then I went home. So my point actually here, when I went home, the moment that I realized I hugged my family, I felt life is so precious. Life is very important. And from this moment, actually, I did struggle a lot. Yeah, and I had a lot of inner struggle in my heart. Number one, I had anger. I was angry.

I was not happy. I was depressed a little bit, you know what? I was questioning, God, why? Did you want vengeance? I did, actually. And I was struggling inside of myself really why this happened. Especially I would say when you lose some very close people to work with them. And in fact, when you work with certain people, you see them every day.

You see more than my family. It's not easy to forget about them. It's not easy to move on. And I kept struggling for a few months actually, where I'm gonna go from here. Even in the beginning I start watching TV, see what's happening, then I reach someone, no, I don't wanna watch anything.

And I had anger in me. But the one thing inside me, I kept actually praying a lot for God to give me guidance and help. And our church actually, actually, in my church, we have what they call a spiritual father. So I kept to see my spiritual father. His name is Abouna Bishop, Father Bishop Dimitri.

And honestly, he did help me a lot to really counsel me how to really overcome this hardship in my life. This was a very difficult hardship. And I kept going to him. I kept praying to God to give me guidance and the most important thing actually I kept actually to ask God why but tell me how to understand why until one day actually which is I call it the turning point in my life personally I realized you know what let me accept what happened.

Abou Nabechou was guiding me, look Father Abou Chouy was guiding me, look, Father, I'll show you, he was guiding me, look. You cannot change what happened, but you accept what happened. And trust God and move on and basically try to accept what happened. And you're always going to think about it. What happened in the night of 11 never even go away from my mind and my soul and my mind, every time. As a priest, I pray liturgy and I pray liturgy. Many times I will always remember my friend in 9-11. I pray for them. I put them on the altar.

And I said, God, reward the soul in heaven. Take care of them, because these people give their life for others. For a moment, actually, that day, I realized, you know what? Let me accept what happened. Let me take this to become a way to change my life, to help me to change others. And I read a quote, actually, that said hardship can either to destroy you or to develop you.

And I felt this hardship that I'm going through right now, I'm going to allow it not to destroy me personally, but to develop me. And through actually guide, through myself to God, God will help me and guide me. Through also going to see my spiritual advice to help me. And I did talk to some people actually also psychologists and psychiatrists tell me emotionally how to overcome this struggle here. Until now I struggle with it inside me but I always look at tomorrow because I feel strongly life is a gift, God gave it to me.

I need to work and I always, this is my attitude by the way since 9-11, I take every day as a new day. You never know what will happen today. That day, 9-11, 3,000 people went to work and guess what, 3,000 people never came back home. For 9-11, it changed the way I think, the way my attitude, even it did affect my service. For that reason, I started serving God a lot in the church. I give a lot of time to the youth to help the youth. I give a lot of time to help in the church. And the way the church choose a priest, the head priest at that time, Father Bishop Dimitri, the site actually one time he called me said, by the way, we're thinking about really for you to become a priest. Honestly, inside of me, I was happy because I wanted really to

help others. And that's probably one of the best ways to help others. And on the other side, I wanted to be a layman, just to be a normal, to go out my way to help others. But I did pray about it. And finally, my wife and I accepted the priesthood to become a priest. A poor kid from Egypt to the United States goes to Yukon, loves March Madness, becomes a construction engineer at the World Trade Center. And through the most catastrophic time in our country since 1941, you find deeper faith, deeper meaning, deeper appreciation of life and become a priest. That's exactly what really happened. I felt that God gave me the gift.

I reflect always how I grew up in a very poor place in Egypt and came here. And I feel God has been guiding throughout my life here. And I felt 9-11 actually would be a time to change me, to help me to be strong, to help others. Okay. I'm a Presbyterian. Alex is a Catholic. There's some everything represented out here. What on earth is a Coptic priest? We don't know. Especially down here in the South, there's very few Coptic anythings. In fact, when I hear Coptic, I'm like, is that an important word, meaning the police are chasing me? I don't understand Coptic. Tell me what Coptic priest is. It's a chance

to teach us all. Very good. Thank you. Thank you so much for that, Kouchen, actually. A Coptic actually, where Coptic means Giptu in Egypt, actually. The meaning of Coptic, when you look at the word, it's actually, it's Giptu means Egypt. And in Egypt, actually, the majority of people are Muslim. And the Coptic people, actually, they are very minority in Egypt. And we receive our faith when Saint Mark, the apostle, came to Egypt and after he received the faith from Christ himself and established the church,

even we call it the Church of Saint Mark or the Chair of Saint Mark, and he chose the first pope. And right now we have our new pope right now in our church, our pope right now, Pope Tawadros, he's actually the Pope of after Januari, his officer, Saint Mark. Coptic people, actually, Christian people in Egypt, they believe that exactly. We have similar face to Orthodox, a lot of similarity with the many different Orthodox churches. Soterios Johnson Like Greek Orthodox? Hicham El-Shamani Greek Orthodox, we have a little bit difference

as Russian Orthodox. We have a lot of similarity with the Armenian Orthodox. We have a little bit difference, yes. Russian Orthodox, we have a lot of similarity with the Armenian Orthodox. We have also a lot of similarity with also the Greek or Armenian Orthodox, also many different Orthodox churches actually. So Coptic means Egypt. Coptic means Egypt, yeah. Is Coptic a group of people in Egypt or just means Egypt? No, Coptic is a group of people that really believe in Christ. In Egypt.

In Egypt, yeah. So in Egypt the Coptic people are a minority. Are minority, yes. Are they, is there a prejudice against the Coptic people? I would say yes. So they're not much different than maybe Kurds in that way. Absolutely. So, they're not much different than maybe Kurds in that way. So, it takes a certain level of courage to profess a Coptic Christian faith in a heavy

Muslim area. Yes. It's a struggle sometimes in certain, especially when you go to certain colleges actually. It is a struggle sometimes in certain, especially when you go to certain college actually. It is a struggle. So when you hear the generalization that all those Muslims from the Middle East, what does that make you feel like? Because that is not a fair representation of what the people in the Middle East look like.

Absolutely. Absolutely. And my fact, we're always trying to differentiate ourselves from them, because we are actually Christian. We believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God. We actually have the church and the dogma of the church, the teaching of the church. And also we are as Christians, the foundation for faith built on one thing only, love God and love others. This is the foundation of the Christian faith. As a matter of fact, one time one of the Pharisees asked Jesus, what is the best commandment?

Teach me, what is the Bible? Give me the Bible. I went to the Christianity and said, Love the Lord God from your heart, the love of others, the weird, as you love yourself. For Coptic people, actually, a group of Christian people, actually we call ourselves the original. We are the original Egypt because Islam came to Egypt while the Coptic people were worshipping and welcomed Islam in Egypt in the 12th century.

Did you ever think that you would end up a Coptic priest? Never crossed my mind, honestly. So is this entire story just divinity in your own life in your mount? It is actually because I feel like God was guiding me in every step in my life to come to this moment here, even to be here with you at this moment. We'll be right back. From I Heart podcasts, before social media, media before the internet before cable news There was Alan Berg you dig what I do. You have a need unfortunately have no sense of humor

That's why you can't ever enjoy this show and that's why you're a loser He was the first and the original shock job that scratchy and reverent kind of way of talking to people You're as dumb as the rest. That's I can't take anyone. I don't agree with you all the time. I don't want you to. I hope that you pick me apart. His voice changed media. His death shocked the nation. And it makes me so angry that he got himself killed

because he had a big mouth. KOA morning talk show host Alan Berg reportedly was shot and killed tonight in downtown Denver. He pointed to the Denver phone book and said, well, there are probably two million suspects. This guy aggravated everybody. From I Heart Podcasts, this is Live Wire, the loud life and shocking murder of Alan Berg.

Listen on the I Heart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A murder happens. The case goes cold. Then over 100 years later, we take a second look. I'm Paul Holes, a retired cold case investigator. And I'm Kate Winkler-Dawson, a journalist and historian. On our podcast, Buried Bones, we reexamine historical true crime cases.

Using modern forensic techniques, we dig into what the original investigators may have missed. Growing up on a farm when I heard a gunshot, I did not immediately think murder. Unless this person went out to shoot squirrels, they're not choosing a 22 to go hunting out there. These cases may be old, but the questions are still relevant and often chilling. I know this chauffeur is not of concern. You know, it's like, well, he's the last one who saw our life.

So how did they eliminate him? Join us as we take you back to the cold cases that haunt us to this day. New episodes every Wednesday on the Exactly Right Network. Listen to Barry Bones on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no.

Across the country, cops call this Taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that Taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley, comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Inc. I get right back there and it's bad.

It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season One, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes one, two, and three on May 21st, and episodes four, five, and six on June 4th. Ad free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple 4th. Ad free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple podcasts. Open AI is a financial abomination. A thing that should not be, an aberration, a symbol of rot at the heart of Silicon Valley.

And I'm gonna tell you why on my show Better Offline, the rudest show in the tech industry, where we're breaking down why open AI, along with other AI companies, are dead set on lying to your boss that they can take your job. I'm also going to be talking with the greatest minds in the industry about all the other ways the rich and powerful are ruining the computer. Listen to Better Offline on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you happen to

get your podcasts. Our iHeart Radio Music Festival presented by Capital One is coming back to Las Vegas. September 19th and 20th. Streaming live only on Hulu. Brian Adams and Sheeran. Fade, Chlorilla, Jelly Roll, John Fogerty, Lil Wayne, LL Cool J, Mariah Carey, Maroon 5, Sammy Hagar, Tate McCragg, The Offspring, Tim McGraw. Tickets are on sale now at axs.com. Get your tickets today. So what do you do now?

I'm actually a priest, a servant sent to Mary Coptic Orthodox Church in East Brunswick. It's still the mother churches in Egypt, which is under our beloved father, His Holiness, both of the second. We have in New Jersey, we have actually the Archdiocese led by one of the bishop, Bishop Gabriel. He's actually the bishop of overseeing the church in New Jersey.

And our faith, as I said, we are also similar. We have the civil sacrament of the church. So as a priest, I always perform a mini sacrament in the church. Baptism, confirmation, Charismation, Communion. Liturgy is the main center for worship and praise in God. And also I serve many youth, many people. One of my passion actually, I love to help people are struggling a lot, failing anything. I also, once every other year I go to mission trip, our church organize a lot of mission trip and we help a lot of youth.

Matter of fact, our church build on children and youth. The foundation that what make, and almost I will say in New Jersey until 1977 was only three churches. Just only in New Jersey now over 30 churches. And the reason is we spread because the church actually build on taking care of the kids and the youth and we help the youth. For my job as a priest, I go to the hospital a lot. Matter of fact, during COVID, many priests could not really leave their home because they survived in 9-11. 9-11 affected me in COVID. I told my family and my kids, guess what? I'm going to go help, everybody needs help. So during

COVID, I basically went to the... When somebody passes away, I will do the prayers for them from my car. And even during the tough months of COVID, actually. I was the only one on the street basically driving, going, praying for people, because I feel God really gave me a gift to live, a gift of life to give. And you know what? I did survive 9-11. I think I can survive COVID, so let me go and live everything according to God's will in my life here.

Two questions. Both, I'm really curious, or probably neither are easy questions. Have you been back? Have you been to the museum? Have you been able to go back? I have not been back. I... To see Freedom Tower from your your house I'm sure.

Yeah I have not. In fact my wife and I we've been talking about this for a while even Mark my son is here. Somehow as much I have the courage to be to be strong to take this hardship that in my life failure right now to turn it around. Something is trying to me I could not come back. I actually was invited as a 911 worker for the building. I was invited many times to go to attend any services in the building when they opened even the Freedom Tower, because some of the folks that they work right now in the Freedom Tower, I work with them. And they invited me so many times, but until now I do not know why I cannot go back.

And every time I think I'm going to go back inside of myself, I start having fear, chill, and pray for me that I can be able to go back one day. Tom Bilyeu We will. You said your job is to love and care and show love and kindness, all of that. And as a Coptic priest, that is now your calling and what you deeply believe in every inch of your soul. But before you were a Coptic priest, you were an engineer in the World Trade Center

and watched people die. And it has affected your life and the lives of those around you forever. The juxtaposition to me is interesting, and I have to ask this question. Have you been able to forgive those that did what they did? And how? I actually forgive them, to be honest with you. In fact, I prayed about them.

In fact, I tell you a simple story actually, it touched me. After I came from the Molitve Center, after I had gone back home from the boat, I went from Wauhoc and I walked to Jordan Square in Jersey. So I took a taxi. And the taxi, the guy turned out to be not a Christian person. And I was riding and I said, you see what happened? See how America deserves? I was so upset. He said that to you the very day? That moment actually. And he said America deserved it?

And you're in the backseat having experienced what she says. I was so upset. I told him, stop the car. You know that what happened? I was actually rightly fighting with him. I told him, I want to get out of here. I better walk not try to with you because really you have no heart. You have no heart at all. And I was so upset actually. Even for that person here, I always feel, one of the, being a Christian, the foundation of the Christian faith about forgiveness. I look at the cross and see how Jesus forgive our sins. And I love when Jesus said, actually, Father, forgive them because they do not know what they're doing.

My justification to them, honestly, I forgive them because they do not know what they're doing. If they know what they're doing, if they know the value of the human being, just it's not even being a religion or anything, just us as a human. How beautiful to live in harmony and to live it good. If they do not understand the value of the human being, they are really, forgive me, I want to say tough or ignorant. Adam Soule, Jr. If you can't listen to that and understand the power of just a normal guy, a poor dude from Egypt who goes to Yukon and gets an engineering degree and goes to work chasing the American

dream who ends up the last living soul out of Tower One who is now a Coptic priest, caring for others, sharing the story not to be grotesque, not to be sensational, but so that we don't forget. And in doing so, finding in the depth of his heart the ability to even forgive the very people who killed his friends. That's powerful. It's powerful. What's that? Thank you, Kuchba. This is actually when after 9-11, they had an award ceremony in Madison Square Garden and I

was actually one of the people that received the medal. It called exceptional outstanding civilian achievement to 9-11. It has my name here in the back and also it has a twin tower which is very charitable. Who gave that to you? I actually was a representative for Governor Pataki. It was supposed to be Governor Pataki but you could not show up. One of the presenters gave it to us. So it's from the governor's office. Yes. And it's a medal for? For exceptional outstanding civilian achievement to 9-11, for the civilians. Did they award those to anybody possibly? This award actually received by two people, but they did another award for firefighters and police officers but this is basically for the normal folks. I love that it's a normal folks medal yes it's alex we need to get some normal folks medals

we'll be right back From I Heart podcasts, before social media, before the internet, before cable news, there was Alan Berg. You dig what I do. You have a need. Unfortunately, you have no sense of humor. That's why you can't ever enjoy this show. And that's why you're a loser. He was the first and the original shock shot.

That scratchy and reverent kind of way of talking to people. You're as dumb as the rest. I can't take anyone. I don't agree with you all the time. I don't want you to. I hope that you pick me apart. His voice changed media. His death shocked the nation. And it makes me so angry that he got himself killed because he had a big mouth. KOA morning talk show host Allen Berg reportedly was shot and killed tonight in downtown Denver. He pointed to the Denver phone book and said, well, there are probably two million suspects.

This guy aggravated everybody. From iHeart Podcasts, this is Live Wire, the loud life and shocking murder of Allen Berg. Listen on the iHeart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A murder happens. The case goes cold. Then, over a hundred years later, we take a second look. I'm Paul Holes, a retired cold case investigator. And I'm Kate Winkler-Dawson, a journalist and historian. On our podcast, Buried Bones, we reexamine historical true crime cases. Using modern forensic techniques, we dig into what the original investigators may have missed. Growing up on a farm when I heard a gunshot,

I did not immediately think murder. Unless this person went out to shoot squirrels, they're not choosing a 22 to go hunting out there. These cases may be old, but the questions are still relevant and often chilling. I know this chauffeur is not of concern. You know, it's like, well, he's the last one who saw our life.

So how did they eliminate him? Join us as we take you back to the cold cases that haunt us to this day. New episodes every Wednesday on the Exactly Right Network. Listen to Barry Bones on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun?

Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops call this Taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that Taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company

dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is absolute season one, Taser Incorporated. mission. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes one, two, and three on May 21st and episodes four, five, and six on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple podcasts. Open AI is a financial abomination,

a thing that should not be, an aberration, a symbol of rot at the heart of Silicon Valley. And I'm gonna tell you why on my show, Better Offline, the rudest show in the tech industry, where we're breaking down why open AI, along with other AI companies, are dead set on lying to your boss that they can take your job.

I'm also gonna be talking with the greatest minds in the industry about all the other ways the rich and powerful are ruining the computer. Listen to Better Offline on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you happen to get your podcasts. Our iHeartRadio Music Festival, presented by Capital One, Apple Podcasts, wherever youspring, Tim McGraw. Tickets are on sale now at AXS.com. Get your tickets today AXS.com. Father Mark, I, you know, I've done a lot of these interviews now and occasionally I feel a presence of my guests or am so inspired by them that I choke up. And

you've done it to me, my friend. Your bravery in overcoming so much of what you went through and your ability to forgive and your basis of your faith and your love and your care for humanity is Man, it's inspiring. So Got a room full of people here and I'm gonna see if any of them would like to ask you any questions Thank you, Quitche bill. Yes Hold it. Microphone coming your way so people listening can hear you. I'm not clear about the timeline there. One building was hit at 845, one with the other hit right after it or what? How much time elapsed? Yeah.

Number two, how much time was there between the striking the building and the building collapse? Alright, so Building one was hit first. Yeah building two was hit second But building two fell first because it was hit lower and so it did more structural damage Then building one fell so I'm gonna give that to that to everybody. Can you put times on that? I think building one was hit about 846 exactly. And then building two was hit about 905 or 903. It was about almost 20 minutes between the two. As Coach Bell said, building one was hit first, but fall second. And building two actually was hit second and fall first

due to the actually the structural damage happened when the airplane went on the lower floor. It seemed like the impact was stronger than Building 1. There was more weight above? Yes, weight above, yeah. Well, I remember being on the phone. And when did Building 2 fall? Building 2 fall, I think, a little bit before 10 o'clock.

And then Building 1 fell? 1027. Only five minutes or so after you exited. After, yes. At 10 20. 10 27, exactly. There you go. And then how much later was the collapse?

How much what? What time did the collapse start happening? Well that's what he's saying. At 10 27. Building one. Building one fell and at 10. About 9 something, 956. 956. So it wasn't even an hour? Yeah, building 1 was stood for more than one hour and a half because from 846 until 1027. That's a close to. Yeah, about an hour and 45 minutes and it took you an hour and a half to get out of. Yes,

yes. So, but building 1 only, building two only stood for about an hour. It stood for less than one hour. I was talking with somebody on the phone and watching NBC's camera on it, and I remember distinctly the second tower being hit because it went, it didn't go through the building, but there was a blast on the far side on building two. You couldn't see it hit. It was blocked by one, but you could see the blast on the far side from it. That's my memory of the whole thing.

There's also one theory because later on after building collapsed, they established a group by Frank Lombardi. He was the chief engineer for the Willett Street Center Construction Division. I think from the governor assigned a group to study how the building collapsed, actually. I was honored, actually, to attend one of those meetings. And also building one from the almost higher floor, they started doing fireproofing material on it.

So building one, the top floors from 78 and above, they were actually having fire-rated material on the beam itself for one hour and a half. In fact, that could be a way. I'm not saying this is exactly, but that's good. But building two did not have the beams itself did not have any kind of fireproofing, very little. It could be a factor also how building one is stood a little bit longer than building

one too. Anyone else at all? I have one more question I'll end with, but nobody else has anything else for you. Okay. Last question. And we'll end it after you answer this. Okay. What is the most important thing you want people to remember about your two buddies

that you had to leave on the 88th when you carried Mo down? What do you want to...what tribute would you like all of our listeners to know about those two men? To honor Mollib, to honor Frank D. Martin and Paul Erurdice, I love to help others. Those two people, a good example to me personally, inspire me, how they put their life together for others. And that's something very important in our culture, actually. How beautiful all of us to help one another, take care of one another. And Frank D. Martin and Paul Eurdice really, they show us that in 9-11, really, how to give your life not only help others, but they basically give their life for others here. And that's what

I always remember, Frank D. Martin and Paul, or these, that always when I remember them, I remember that how they were able to help others, go out to their world others. And that's exactly, my job as a priest, it inspired me how to serve others, how to help others. I love one of my favorite verses in the Bible, it said actually, for the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve. I feel Frank DiMartini basically was a good example and followed these helping others to think of others. I imagine my mind, imagine our society, all of us here, trying to give a hand to others, help others, and hear others, helping others by hearing somebody, talk to somebody, sharing your thoughts with somebody,

actually tapping on somebody, smiling at somebody. I think our life here on earth would be a heaven. Just an army of normal folks trying to help one another, huh? I love this beautiful call. I love it very much because I love the idea of arm of normal folks really because that's good. Thank you so much. Good. Father Mark, thanks for coming to Memphis and sharing your story.

Thanks for being here today. I will never forget this conversation and I appreciate you being willing to dive back into the darkness of some things that were demons in your life to share with us so that we understand the story and don't forget, but most importantly, thank you for serving humanity in the way that you do. And I don't know how anybody can listen to this and not be awestruck and inspired. And it is with so much humility that I thank you for being with us. Thank you so much, and thank you, Coach Bell.

Finally, I want to also thank my family. Please. I want to thank my beautiful family, my wife, Dina, and my beautiful kids, Mark and Becky, because Dina did a lot during 9-11 to give me this emotional support, and thank God for that. I want to thank also my church for giving me the support, especially Father Bichard Dimitri, my spiritual father really.

He did really help me a lot and helped me to overcome this hardship, to turn the hardship into become something new. I have a story about how to deal with hardship. Can I share it quickly with you? Please. A story about, I read it and that really gave me so much power. Actually in life, he can be either a carrot or an egg or a coffee. You can be what? A carrot. A carrot? Or an egg or a coffee. Okay. And that story

actually inspired me so much here. And a very young woman came to her mother said mommy I'm really struggling in my life. How can I deal with hardship? He said my daughter, you know what, you're always going to face hardship. So she took her daughter to the kitchen and she had the boiling water. A boiling water representing the hardship that goes on in your life. He said, my daughter, guess what? You see the carrot looks rigid and strong. Once you put the carrot in the hot water, what happened to it? It becomes soft. Don't be soft. He told her, what about the eggs, mommy? He said, look, when you take the eggs, you put the eggs in the hot water, the eggs actually, what happens to the eggs inside, become hardened.

Don't allow the hardship to make you hardened. But the coffee is beautiful. The coffee, when they put some coffee in the hot water, it changes the color, it changes the coffee itself, and all of us will live on coffee. So how beautiful, always in life, to be a good coffee and coffee. Perfect, perfect way to end. Thanks for being here. Coach Bell, thank you so much. I'm honored to meet with you and I thank Alex and everybody here. Thank you for coming. God bless you all.

God bless you. And thank you for joining us this week. If Father Mark Hannah has inspired you in general, which I don't know how he couldn't possibly have done that, or if he's inspired you better yet to take action by acting heroically in your community, please let me know. I'd love to hear about it. You can write me anytime at billatnormalfololks.us and I promise you I will

respond. If you enjoyed this episode, share it with friends and on social, subscribe to the podcast, rate it, review it, join the Army at NormalFolks.us, consider becoming a premium member there. Any and all of these things that will help us grow an army of normal folks. I'm Bill Courtney, reminding you until next time, there was Alan Berg. He was the first and the original shock choc. That scratchy reverent kind of way of talking to people and telling them that you're an idiot and I'm going to hang up on you. This is Live Wire, the loud life and shocking murder of Alan Berg.

And he pointed to the Denver phone book and said, well, there are probably two million suspects. Listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. OpenAI is a financial abomination, a thing that should not be, an aberration, a symbol of rot at the heart of Silicon Valley. And I'm going to tell you why on my show, Better Offline, the rudest show in the tech industry,

where we're breaking down why OpenAI, along with other the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. This is Absolute Season One, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season One, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Our iHeartRadio Music Festival, presented by Capital One,

is coming back to Las Vegas. Vegas! September 19th and 20th. On your feet! Streaming live only on Hulu. Ladies and gentlemen. Brian Adams and Sharon fade chlorella jelly roll, John Fogarty, Lil Wayne, LL Cool J, Mariah Carey, Maroon 5,

Sammy Hagar, Tate McCragg, The Offspring, Tim McGraw. Tickets are on sale now at AXS.com. Get your tickets today AXS.com. A Body, a suspect, and a hundred years of silence, Buried Bones is a podcast about the forgotten crimes history tried to leave behind. A common misperception about serial predators is that every single time they commit a crime, they commit it the same way. The past is a way of talking if you know what to listen for. New episodes every Wednesday on the Exactly Right Network. Listen to Buried Bones on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

This is an iHeart Podcast.