An alumnus drives 1,900 miles to rejoin his family --- finding empathy and compassion along the way.

by David Fleisher ’91

I was in San Antonio, Texas, on a planned brief business trip, about ready to depart for home, when the attack on our country unfolded before us on live television. Amidst the shock of the events, my main goal was to get home to my family. Flights were canceled, and only after hours of phone calls did my colleague and I locate a rental car and decide to make the drive to Philadelphia. Our involuntary 1,900-mile road trip proved to be a lesson on the American spirit.

During the nonstop news coverage of every aspect of the tragedies, some networks ran clips of taped reactions of people from different parts of the country. On our trip back, we learned firsthand about the impact the terrorist attacks had on Americans around the country, from all walks of life. Like the senior citizen working in the Wal-Mart in Garland, Texas, who well remembered Pearl Harbor and said the September 11 attack was even worse. Or the Texas state trooper who pulled us over for going a few miles over the speed limit. He just gave us a warning but insisted that we call home "to make sure your family knows you’re all right." Or the high school–aged clerk in a convenience store in Texarkana, Arkansas, who kept us waiting a few extra moments at the register. She’d been watching CNN on a small black-and-white TV behind the counter and needed time to wipe away her tears.

The clerk in Hope, Arkansas. The waitresses in Nashville, Tennessee. The fellow traveler in Christiansburg, Virginia --- an Arab American --- proudly wearing his red, white, and blue ribbon and as anxious to get home to his loved ones as we were.

I eventually made it back to Cherry Hill; hugging Jen and the kids never felt so good. When my head finally hit the pillow, I had a few minutes to reflect on where I’d traveled and wonder about the journey our country would take. Since September 11 the nation has been driving through a busy intersection where tragedy, fear, courage, and faith all collide. I’ve seen many of the faces of America, and I am sure that courage and faith will prevail.

David Fleisher, president of the Ithaca College Alumni Association Board of Directors, is executive vice president at Progress Financial Resources in Philadelphia. He and his wife, Jennifer Cooley Fleisher ’92, have two children, Anna and Matthew.