It was our family's turn to do book club. I had been given the suggestion by a fellow choir
"The True Story Behind the Events on 9/11 that Inspired Broadway’s Smash Hit Musical Come from Away, Featuring All New Material from the Author
When 38 jetliners bound for the United States were forced to land at Gander International Airport in Canada by the closing of U.S. airspace on September 11, the population of this small town on Newfoundland Island swelled from 10,300 to nearly 17,000. The citizens of Gander met the stranded passengers with an overwhelming display of friendship and goodwill.
As the passengers stepped from the airplanes, exhausted, hungry, and distraught after being held on board for nearly 24 hours while security checked all of the baggage, they were greeted with a feast prepared by the townspeople. Local bus drivers who had been on strike came off the picket lines to transport the passengers to the various shelters set up in local schools and churches. Linens and toiletries were bought and donated. A middle school provided showers, as well as access to computers, email, and televisions, allowing the passengers to stay in touch with family and follow the news.
Over the course of those four days, many of the passengers developed friendships with Gander residents that they expect to last a lifetime. As a show of thanks, scholarship funds for the children of Gander have been formed and donations have been made to provide new computers for the schools. This book recounts the inspiring story of the residents of Gander, Canada, whose acts of kindness have touched the lives of thousands of people and been an example of humanity and goodwill."
Facts, Questions, and Answers:
- Where is Gander? It is on the island of Newfoundland and is about the farthest East you can go in Canada.
- Population Comparison:
- Gander had a population of around 10,000 (some sources reported less and others reported up to 10,300)
- 38 Flights flew into Gander with 6,132 passengers (not including pilots or other flight crew members
- If each flight had 2 pilots and 5 crew members that would bring the total number of people that flew into Gander to 6,398 (after a Google search the number reported was anywhere from 6,600-7,000 people).
- To put this in perspective (because numbers don't mean a lot to me and growing up in a town with around 200 people in it, 10,000 seemed huge).
- Vernal, UT's population is 10,432, and Roosevelt, UT's population is 7,097.
- Price, UT's population is 8,262 and Moab UT's population is 5,321.
- In this comparison imagine Vernal or Price as Gander. Roosevelt or Moab represents the people from the flights. The people of Vernal or Price now have to provide shelter, food, and other toiletries for all the people of Roosevelt or Moab. Where do you put them?
- Do you remember where you were when you received the news about 9/11 and how did you find out?
- Some of the passengers found out on the plane when their captain announced it. Some of the other passengers didn't know until later when watching the news.
- My cousin Kate shared she was waiting at the park with her son Ethan for a play group. The other moms had not shown up. She called one of them to find out what was going on and she told Kate she needed to go home and watch the news.
- I remember it being on the news Mom was watching while I was getting ready for school that morning. I didn't think too much of it. She watched the news every morning. It wasn't until I got to school, when we were watching the news, that I realized what Mom was watching at home was important (I still didn't recognize the significance of it until later).
- What were your thoughts/feelings?
- The consensus was shock. Many watched the news for several days straight.
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| This is my journal entry from that day. I was 9 years old in 3rd Grade. Don't mind the spelling. |
- Would you have let strangers into your home to shower, eat, take your car around, etc.?
- Aunt Mary immediately said no. Others were unsure. I think I would allow people to come shower and feed them, but I don't know if I would give them the keys to my car to take around whenever they wanted.
- Have you ever been a "come from away"? What was your experience?
- Uncle Boyd shared that when we (Aunt Mary, Uncle Boyd, Laura, Kate, Stephanie, Uncle Stan, Aunt Jerilyn, and myself) were in Scotland, he felt the people we met there were all very nice. This reminded me of a time while in Scotland when Kate was trying to back up the van so another car could get out of the hotel parking lot. It was a tight space and only 1 vehicle could enter and exit at a time. He was American and was getting angry at how long it was taking Kate to back out. He was angry and yelling. Finally, we got it, let him out, and then went back in and parked. The people watching the encounter clapped for Kate when we backed out and then after we parked.
- I didn't think of this one until later, but wanted to share it here. Last November, Mary, Meg, and I went to Price to watch Millie and Asher in The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. After the play, we went back to Dave and Kara's and met up with Paul, Bel, and their girls, and Kate, Laird, and their family. We had dessert and chatted. Kate invited Meg and me to attend Duncan's endowment session at the Provo Temple the next day. Meg and I decided to go. Meg and Mary left somewhere in the 10 pm hour. My plan was to go back to Ogden that night. I was finishing up a conversation when the next thing I knew it was 11 pm. I had 3 sets of cousins (Paul and Bel, Kate and Laird, and Dave and Kara) tell me I could not travel to Ogden that night. Please note I did not have anything with me. I did bring my glasses and contact case because I knew it was going to be a late night, and I don't always like to drive with my contacts in. I ended up spending the night at Dave and Kara's. I slept with Lily in her room. Kara provided me some of her pajamas to wear to bed. She gave me a toothbrush and I used someone's (I think it was Lily's) face wash and face lotion. The next morning, Kara provided me with a skirt and shirt I could wear to go to the temple. I helped cook breakfast before changing, and after everyone ate and changed, we made our way to Provo. In this story I was a "come from away" and Kara was one of the people from Gander, providing me food, shelter, a change of clothes, and toiletries.
- Would you have gotten onto the plane heading back to Germany?
- No one really had an answer to this question. The only thing everyone agreed on is they would be angry/upset at being lied to. In the book, a plane was scheduled to fly to New York. It had come from Germany. After some days in Gander, the passengers were told they would be flying on to New York. But when they were getting on the plane, one of the last passengers overheard the crew members and learned they were going back to Germany instead of on to New York. They let the people on the plane know what was happening and asked/refused to get on the plane. Another family joined the passenger and her family and did not get on the plane and found an alternative route home.
- Which individuals and stories stayed with you after reading the book? Why?
- I don't think I asked this question to the group, or if I did, I don't remember anyone's answer. One that stood out to me was the story of the 4-5 passengers who became friends while in Gander and stayed friends after. They stayed in contact with each other and even met up again several years later.
- Official Newfie Challenge
- I didn't talk about this. In the book and also in the musical they tell the story about how to become an official Newfie. Several of the passengers became honorary Newfies. I was going to ask if anyone had taken part in a challenge to become an official member of something. I never have, but I do remember while I went to school in Price, they had a True Eagle night. To become a True Eagle, you had to kiss a student over Gibby the rock.
- Alcohol Theme
- A theme that was brought up in the book is how much alcohol people consumed. The passengers drank on the flight and while grounded at the airport and were constantly looking for the pub. We talked about how for us, because we are members of the church, it seems like a lot of alcohol. For society, it was an acceptable/normal amount. For a lot of people, it is how they take the edge off, destress, and possibly cope. We talked about things we do to cope instead of using alcohol. Mandy was crocheting at the time, and she answered "With this", holding up her crochet project.
- At the end of the discussion, I shared some resources to learn more about the Gander story. One is a book written by one of the passengers who was stranded in Gander and the other is a musical based on this book and other stories about the Gander experience on 9/11.
- Channel of Peace: Stranded in Gander on 9/11written by Kevin Tuerff
- Come From Away Musical
- Playing on Apple+ TV
- Playing at the Eccles Theater April 26-28
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