Tears, flowers, and a promise: Bloomington remembers Tom Burnett
Remembering Tom Burnett Jr. on 9/11
A Bloomington Jefferson High School graduate is remembered as a hero for leading a rebellion against hijackers on Flight 93 during the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. FOX 9’s Corin Hoggard has the story on the 25th anniversary.
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (FOX 9) - Every year, Minnesotans gather to honor the lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001, including a Bloomington native who helped change the course of that day.
Tom Burnett and Flight 93
What we know:
Tom Burnett is a hometown hero — a graduate of Bloomington Jefferson High School and one of the passengers who led a rebellion against the hijackers aboard Flight 93, preventing an even worse attack.
At Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Patricia Boyd sits in the shade every year and watches over Burnett's grave.
"I come out here every 9/11," said Patricia Boyd.
Boyd said his bravery, alongside other passengers and crew members on Flight 93, left a lasting mark on her.
"It changed my life. And I made a promise that I would always be as courageous as they were," Boyd said.
She also placed Burnett's page from her Minnesota Fallen Heroes calendar and an Honor Flag at his grave site — a flag whose stripes are made up of the 2,977 names of Sept. 11 victims, including Gary Koecheler.
Honoring those lost
Big picture view:
At Bloomington Jefferson, Burnett's 50-year class reunion honored him with a visit to a rock memorial on campus.
Back at the cemetery, flag runners drove by to pay tribute and dozens of strangers added personal touches to his grave site.
"I like to put flowers here when nobody else does, just for the family that's not here," said Becky Kritz. "But I also someday want to meet him and say, I want to pay respects to you for what you did."
A few yards from Burnett's grave, Judy Schneider placed flowers at the grave of her brother, Gary Koecheler — a St. Paul native who earned a Bronze Star for bravery in Vietnam but was among the hundreds of people killed in the South Tower.
"He was a character. He was a great guy, my big brother," said Judy Schneider.
Schneider said visiting the cemetery and listening to every name and every toll of the bell at Ground Zero has become a yearly habit.
"We just like to come and pay remembrance to him, you know?" she said. "I'm sorry, it's still so hard."
Schneider said the weight of the day extends beyond her own family's loss.
"It's moving because I just think of how hard it was for one family to go through losing one person and so many people were lost," said Schneider.
What we don't know:
It is not yet known whether the push by Burnett's Class of 1981 classmates to name a new stadium after him will move forward.