PenFed Leaders Recall 9/11 Attack On Pentagon, Remember Victims

TYSONS, VA — 9:37 a.m., the moment the hijacked American Airlines Flight 77 plane struck the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001, had a significant impact on PenFed Credit Union, which has its signature branch inside the Pentagon. PenFed and employees held a moment of silence at its Tysons headquarters at that time Wednesday in remembrance of the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. PenFed has also put up a large American flag over its headquarters in Tysons.

The attack on the Pentagon killed 125 people inside the Pentagon and the 64 passengers on American Airlines Flight 77, which includes the five hijackers. PenFed Foundation's president, Gen. John W. Nicholson, Jr. had been assigned to the Pentagon in 2001. In fact, his desk was 100 feet from where the nose of the aircraft went through the building. That day, he had been moving into a new house and heard about the attack on the radio. He immediately called the office.

"The answering machine picked up which led to my mistaken belief that my colleagues were okay," said Nicholson. "In fact, one of them suffered third-degree burns but was lucky to be alive as he had been protected from the fireball by his old-style metal desk. Sadly, everyone between his desk and the plane perished."

Nicholson went on to serve six years in Afghanistan and was the longest serving commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan and NATO's Resolute Support Mission for over two years. Now retired, the Four-Star General joined the PenFed Foundation earlier in 2019.

James Schenck, PenFed's president and CEO, had been working in Alexandria when the attacks unfolded. "After a plane hit the Pentagon, I knew I had to do something – PenFed had a branch inside the building," he said. "Some volunteers and I headed to the Pentagon to see what we could do. I'll never forget it."

PenFed reopened on Sept. 12, providing assistance to the Pentagon community.

The federal credit union's core membership is made up from members of the defense and military communities. After the 9/11 attacks happened, PenFed launched the PenFed Foundation to support service members, veterans and their families.

Retired Army Col. Jamie Gayton, now the foundation's executive vice president of member operations, officially accounted for the dead and missing in addition to writing posthumous and valorous awards for members in his department.

"As we remember that day, there is great pain but there is also great hope," Gayton said. "Every day at PenFed, I get to work alongside the military families who have staked their lives on defending the flag that now covers our building."

The foundation has assisted over 140,000 members of the military community with financial education, credit-building, homeownership, short-term assistance and veteran entrepreneurial support services.