Last week, I was out of town in the beautiful city of Springfield, MO, working, interviewing, and learning about a little city so similar to Charleston, in many ways. Listening to the evening news, I was exhausted from delays at the airport. My eyes were so tired, I fought to keep them open; however, when I heard the dreadful news about the Sofa Super Store fire, I ached, telling myself it was only a figment of my imagination. Fires like that do not happen in Charleston.
Tuesday morning, I awoke to the news confirmed by the Today Show. Nine firefighters dead in Charleston. Nine families forever changed. Nine heroes embraced in the arms of God. Fires like that do not happen in Charleston. I was still in disbelief.
The fire at Sofa Super Store took the lives of:
• Engineer Brad Baity
• CPT. Mike Benke
• Firefighter Melvin Champaign
• Firefighter James “Earl” Allen Drayton
• Asst. Engineer Michael French
• CPT. William “Billy” Hutchinson, III
• Engineer Mark Kelsey
• CPT. Louis Mulkey
• Firefighter Brandon Thompson
Living in Mt. Pleasant, a suburb just across the Arthur Ravenel, Jr. Bridge, I do not recognize any of the heroes, although the more I read about them, the more I know them. As a writer, I feel compelled to write about them, to let the world know, people in the Charleston, South Carolina communities cherish and respect our firefighters. After all, they are the first to come to our aid when we are injured, sick, or in need of their lifesaving services.
To the families of the Charleston Nine, I wish you love. I cannot imagine how dreadful that day was for all of the families. Awakening in the morning, kissing your loved one before he goes to work for his dedication to service. Perhaps speaking to your loved one during the day, never imagining a tragic fire would turn into a tornado of fire and take him away. Saying to you, “I know how you feel,” is simply a cliché. No one can imagine how empty you feel, but please know, we, the community want to help.
Arriving home from Springfield early Saturday morning, in the afternoon, my husband and I drove by the Sofa Super Store. The devastation reminds me of the skeleton of buildings from 9-11. Sound bites on the nightly news do not do it justice. The warehouse behind the gutted building echoes of 9-11 and it chills me to look at it. Taking over 70+ photographs, my heart aches as I walk along the Memorial sidewalk.
What can I, as a writer, and a resident of the community do? I have donated to the Charleston Nine funds. I pray nightly for your grief to ease, but it will be a long process for all of you. Somehow, writing about it, from the perspective of a writer and photojournalist is all I can do to let you, the families of the Charleston Nine, know we ache for your heroes and your families.
My one prayer is that the Charleston community will pull together to do all that we can to build a memorial park for that location. Rebuilding Sofa Super Store is not an option, at least not for those in the Charleston communities who cherish and preserve our history. On the local news, there are discussions of what should be done. Rebuild the store? I say no. We must honor the Charleston Nine and remember our 6-18-2007. We lost nine amazing firefighters. We must not allow them to have breathed their last breath in a tornado of flames. Rest in Peace, Charleston Nine.
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