Maureen Murray worked in New York City during the attempted bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993.
So, when she and her wife, Sue Riccardelli, were flying home from a vacation in France on Sept. 11, 2001, and were told their flight was being diverted to Canada because of “terroristic activities,” she assumed it was something along those lines.
“We had no idea what had happened on the plane,” she said. “I thought it was just a nut trying to cause trouble.”
Soon after landing in Gander, Newfoundland, she saw the horror in real time.
“The footage of the Towers coming down was everywhere,” she said. “We were stunned.”
And in a place they never knew existed.
Murray and Riccardelli were among approximately 6,500 passengers from 38 planes, representing more than 100 countries — suddenly placed in Gander, a town of fewer than 10,000 people.
What happened next was a glimmer of sunshine on the country’s darkest day.
The residents of Gander, heeding the call of their mayor, instantly mobilized, offering food, clothing, housing — whatever was needed.
They welcomed Murray, Riccardelli and the rest of a group that would come to be known as ‘The Plane People’ with open arms.
***
The passengers were not allowed to retrieve their luggage.
The airport, used mainly by the Canadian military and as a refueling hub for commercial airlines coming or going across the Atlantic, was not equipped to handle that many planes.
And no one was really sure how long the passengers would be there.
Murray and Riccardelli said their first trip was to the local Walmart — “to get some underwear,” Riccardelli said — and whatever else they could think of.
The Plane People were placed throughout the area, including many in the homes of residents. Murray and Riccardelli were housed in the College of North Atlantic, a university and skills training center (aviation, nursing, culinary arts) that serves that part of the country.
Murray and Riccardelli slept on a classroom floor for days.
They didn’t mind. They were grateful for the hospitality — and grateful the school had a culinary arts program.
“We ate better there than we did in France,” Riccardelli joked.
They were there for four days. The connection continues to this day.
***
Morris Plains is known as the Community of Caring.
And though the town lost just one resident, it has one of the finest 9/11 Memorials in the area. (Full disclosure, the author is a long-time resident).
Morris Plains officials make sure they find a unique way to tell the story to a few dozen residents and a few hundred students (all of which obviously were born well after the event) each year.
This year, long-time town residents Riccardelli and Murray told their tale — and did so in a way that the few hundred 6th-8th graders in attendance could understand.
They noted the number of Plane People was the equivalent of the population of Morris Plains.
They asked the kids to picture what it would be like to take in that amount of people at their school, the community center and individual houses.
They explained that town officials went door-to-door, asking for help — and that the community responded.
They noted that when Frank Druetzler, the mayor of Morris Plains at the time, heard about the outpouring of assistance from the residents of Gander, he reached out to his counterpart there.
On the tenth anniversary of the event, Morris Plains and Gander became sister cities, exchanging mementos. Gander has embraced the ‘Community of Caring’ motto, too.
***
All of this sounds like a movie. It’s actually a play.
‘Come From Away,’ the story of Gander, ran on Broadway from 2017-22, winning a Tony. It’s still on the circuit. In fact, it will do a short run at Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn next February.
The spirit of the moment is kept alive in other ways. There are numerous books on the week. A movie eventually was made. And it’s become part of the educational curriculum in Canada.
In addition, the nonprofit, ‘Pay it Forward 9/11,’ was created. It asks people to do three good deeds every September. (Learn more, contribute here)
Riccardelli and Murray remember in other ways. They said they return to Gander on a semi-regular basis — and certainly are planning to go next year, the 25th anniversary.
For them, it’s a way to reconnect with the thousands of other “Plane People” — and to thank the residents of Gander.
“These people are like brothers and sisters and aunts and uncles to us,” Murray said.
On one trip, the Plane People served a traditional Newfoundland breakfast to the residents.
It was the least they could do.
“We have a special bond,” Murray said.
From a day they will never forget.
“We saw the worst of humanity and the best of humanity on the very same day,” Riccardelli said.
