Skip to main content

Anonymous (not verified)

February 19, 2020

It started out as a typical day of school. It was my first week of Kindergarten, all I remember is that the news came on and I saw what was going on and not long after that my teacher gets a call from the Federal Government. It was my mom. At the time she was working in the general area near the pentagon and she told my teacher to tell me she was fine. I was worried to death because she saw the plane go down and she saw the explosion. I knew that she worked near it. Also I found out my Grandmother worked in the Pentagon when this all happened. The side that got hit was financial part of it and that is what she worked in. Off that topic since it is very depressing to me knowing what could have happened. I went to New York City this past November, and I got to see where they were working to complete the memorial at the site of the twin towers. When I saw what they were doing I had no idea what they were doing but today I got to see. Firefighters are always taken for granted, and I wanted to take time to say thank you, even though you lost your life. You did it to save others which to me should be the greatest honor any man or woman could receive.

Sincerely
David Riley

Add new Guest Book entry

Restricted HTML

  • You can align images (data-align="center"), but also videos, blockquotes, and so on.
  • You can caption images (data-caption="Text"), but also videos, blockquotes, and so on.
 

Guestbook comments are held until moderator approval.

In addition to this Guestbook post, if you are a family or friend of this victim, we welcome you to contribute photographs, documents, or stories to this Living Memorial page. To do so, complete this submission form . Your content will be reviewed by our team, and a staff member will reach out to you at your convenience.

 
In Remembrance
Age:
37
Place of Residence:
Monroe, NY
Location on 9/11:
WTC
Occupation:
Fire Department of New York | Firefighter, Ladder 25
Biography:

On a March afternoon two years ago, Matthew E. Barnes climbed to the top of a 100-foot aerial ladder to rescue 6-week- old twins from a furious blaze on the Upper West Side. The ladder swayed in the crisp breeze as Matthew Barnes took Isabella and Jacob Kalodner from the hands of their distraught mother, Linda.

Mr. Barnes, who was honored at City Hall for the rescue, said at the ceremony that he had tried to convince Mrs. Kalodner to wait for firefighters to reach them from inside the building. "She advised me she wasn't going to do that," he said. "I figured if she's willing to pass her baby out a 10th-story window, I should take it."

Mrs. Kalodner told him: "You treated our children like they were your own. There's nothing I can say but thanks."

The compassion was easy.

Mr. Barnes, 37, of Monroe, N.Y., loved children, said Sean O'Brien, a friend and fellow firefighter from Ladder Company 25. Mr. Barnes and his wife, Susan, had three boys of their own, Matthew Jr. 12, Jesse, 10, and Thomas, 8. He loved to take them fishing. "Sue always had a project for Matt to do around the house, but somehow Matt would manage to slip out and go fishing with the boys instead," Mr. O'Brien said. "But the projects around the house always got done. They were proud of their home."