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News | Sept. 7, 2021

DLA Aviation employees remember 9/11: Jose Buckles

Name: Jose Buckles

Organization: DLA Aviation at Jacksonville, Florida

What is your job title, and what do you do, specifically? I’m a customer support specialist. I support the Fleet Readiness Center Southeast Avionics Division with components and material supplies in support of the nation’s warfighters.

In a paragraph, please tell where you were and what you were doing on Sept. 11, 2001. I was an active-duty Navy senior chief petty officer stationed at Naval Station Mayport, Florida. That morning, I finished standing watch, briefing the commanding officer of anything that occurred overnight and went to work at the supply department, where I was the leading chief petty officer. When I got to the office, the supply officer told me to go home and get some rest, since I been awake almost all night. On my way home, I got a call telling me to get home, pack a bag and come back to the base immediately. When I got home, I turned on the TV just as the second tower crumbled to the ground. I packed a bag and went back to base. I stayed at the command center for a week until essential personnel were allowed to leave, but the base remained closed.

What can we do to ensure future generations never forget that fateful day? I think President George W. Bush said it best as he addressed the nation from the Oval Office in the hours after the attacks, “Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America. These acts shatter steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve.”