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 | Danielle A. Marshall
| What a difference a day makes — and September 11 has made all the difference to me. It was the fall of 2001 when I moved back to the Washington, D.C. area to pursue work on my Ph.D. At the time I was so sure of what I wanted. After finishing my degree I would find a great job, make lots of money, and live the life many dream of. Looking back, it seems as if I was a completely different woman than the one I am today.
On the morning of 9/11, I was driving to school. Traffic had come to a standstill and my only concern was that I was going to be late for class. Then I remember hearing a voice on the radio saying, "I can't believe this is happening" over and over again. After what seemed like an eternity, I learned that two planes had hit the World Trade Center, and that the traffic jam I was so preoccupied with was due to a third plane crashing into the Pentagon. How on earth was this possible! What was going on?
Then it hit me. I had never in my life experienced a sense of fear this great; it was utter and complete helplessness. Oh God, all of my family was in NYC; was everyone all right? My grandfather was a retired fire chief; would he rush to the scene? My father worked for the Metropolitan Transit Authority, my uncle on the Whitestone Bridge. What would the next target be? A million horrible thoughts ran through my mind.
I tried calling everyone at home, only to hear "All circuits are busy," again and again. Never had I ever felt so alone in the world. In a single day, NYC and Washington D.C., the only two homes I had ever known, had come under fire. I wanted desperately to run and hide, but run where? We were under attack! So I did the only things I could; I prayed and I waited.
In the following days, my fear was replaced by an urge to help. But how? Blood banks in my area had so many donors they were turning people away. Again, there was this feeling of helplessness. I remember President Bush saying that the best way to help was to return to normal life. But what did that mean? My whole world had been turned upside down. As I watched the footage of the towers collapsing and learned of the last-minute phone calls of people on board each of the planes had made, I fell deep into thought. If I were taken off this earth tomorrow, how would I be remembered?
Shortly after 9/11, I was contacted about taking a position with Jumpstart, a preschool enrichment and literacy program. I was thrilled! It was the opportunity I had been searching for. I strongly identified with Jumpstart's philosophy of enhancing literacy, language and social skills in young children by pairing them one-to-one with college students. As a site manager at Jumpstart Baton Rouge, I would be responsible for training and supporting students at Louisiana State University to serve in the program. In other words, I would not only be returning to service, but encouraging others to do so as well.
I had previously served as a Jumpstart Corps member while attending Howard University in Washington, D.C. Knowing that each day I would have smiling faces waiting anxiously for me to share in the reading of a favorite story, or that I could help a child write a letter home to mom had been amazing. It was my chance to spend time with a child who looked up to me and perhaps even to change the way he or she viewed education forever.
Because of my experience with Jumpstart, I was willing to leave my Ph.D. program mid-year and move half way across the country. Now, as a site manager, I provide ongoing training to empower college students who serve as Jumpstart Corps members to change children's lives. It is my hope that through this empowerment, college students who serve today will continue to do so for years to come and will impart a new value system into the youth of tomorrow.
I think that out of the terrible events of September 11, some good has come. I still want to return to finish my Ph.D. but this time my objective is to use my degree to help uplift others. What I value and hold most dear to me now is the knowledge that when I lay my head down to sleep at night I have spent my day making a positive difference in someone else's life.
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