PenFed Leaders, Military Veterans Remember 9/11 At Ceremony

TYSONS, VA — To mark the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorists attacks and honor those who were impacted, PedFed Credit Union held a remembrance ceremony Friday and unveiled a 30 x 60-foot American flag on the side of its corporate headquarters in Tysons.

PenFed Board members, employees and honored guests attended the ceremony and moment of silence timed when American Airlines Flight 77 struck the Pentagon. The attack hits close to home for PenFed because its signature branch is located inside the Pentagon.

The ceremony featured PedFed leaders, military veterans and first responders who recalled the Sept. 11 attacks. Ed Cody, PenFed's board chairman was in Arlington County conducting a staff meeting when he saw the plane heading towards The Pentagon and heard the crash. Two of his friends, Chuck Sabin and Sandra Letitia White, died in that attack.

James Schenck, the president and CEO of the PenFed Credit Union and CEO of PenFed Foundation, was working at PenFed in Alexandria when he learned the news.

"From our offices in Alexandria, we could see the smoke seven miles away," said Schenck in remarks at the ceremony. "Immediately our leaders knew that we had to be there for our 28 employees inside the Pentagon branch, but we couldn't drive or take public transportation. I remember running seven miles on foot with my colleagues towards the Pentagon, and I'll never forget what I saw that day. In the aftermaths of the attacks as the building was burning, I saw the best of America, the selflessness of men and women, firefighters, policemen, and those wearing the uniform moving towards the burning building to assist and help others survive."

Retired Army Gen. John W. Nicholson Jr., president of the PenFed Foundation, had a desk in the Pentagon 100 feet from where the nose of the plane hit the building. But he had been moving into a new house the day of the attack.

"Everyone between my desk and the plane perished," he said. "You don’t forget something like this. It stays with you forever. What I do every day, I do now in honor of those people we lost."

Charlie Miles, now PenFed’s director of military and college employment programs, was in the military stationed near New York City on Sept. 11.

"I was 40 miles north of the city, but we could see the smoke coming off the towers all the way from Manhattan," said Miles, who flew 45 combat missions in Afghanistan and Iraq during his military career. "I flew over Ground Zero not long after that, and it was an incredibly moving experience. My Marine Corps contract ended in 2001, but I stayed for another 11 years. I’m very proud to work with PenFed now, because at PenFed, we remember those sacrifices, and we get the opportunity to continue serving every day."

Before or after the ceremony, attendees were invited to view the 252 Engine, a fire truck used in the rescue efforts on Sept. 11, 2001. Six New York City Fire Department crew members were part of the unit that responded to the North Tower of the World Trade Center shortly after the attacks. The members were making their way through the building to help other firefighters and died in the line of duty on Sept. 11. The truck was on display at the site with commemorative signs to honor the fallen heroes.

PenFed reopened for business the day after the attacks to provide service and support to the Pentagon community. The credit union went on to launch the PenFed Foundation to support service members, veterans and their families. Over 142,000 members of the military community have received assistance through the PenFed Foundation’s financial education, credit-building, homeownership, short-term assistance and veteran entrepreneurial support services.