In Cary, North Carolina, Vanessa Minter was one of the first people on the ground to learn of the terror unfolding in the air on September 11, 2001. Minter, a reservations agent for American Airlines, was on the other end of a phone call with flight attendant Betty Ong, who was sitting in the rear galley of the hijacked American Airlines Flight 11, which had left Boston for Los Angeles. “He said, ‘I think they’re kidnapping us,'” Minter recalled in an interview. with “CBS Mornings.” Minter said he knew the threat was real from Ong’s tone of voice. “I had to ask myself: Could she have done that? Because she was literally a pillar. She knew what she was doing. She knew what information we needed and she was very professional,” Minter explained. Ong relayed critical information during the call that contributed to the FAA’s decision to close U.S. airspace. She would be the last person Ong spoke to before the plane crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center. Minter recalled some of Ong’s last words during their conversation: “Pray for us.” “I was the last person he talked to and I couldn’t make it better. I couldn’t even help,” Minter said. Three weeks after the 9/11 attacks, Minter wrote a letter to Ong’s family in California. He described Ong’s bravery and concern for passengers and their safety. “I want you to know that she will always be in my heart and in my prayers throughout life,” he wrote. Letter from Vanessa Minter to Betty Ong’s family after the 9/11 attacks The letter was delivered to Ong’s older brother, Harry, now 77 and a grandfather of five. Harry said that was the first time the family heard about the call on air. “When we heard it, we were so proud of Betty,” Harry said. Every month, Harry visits a memorial to Ong at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma, California, outside San Francisco, where he has a niche and a grave. Crews recovered a bone fragment with her DNA two blocks from Ground Zero in 2002. “Betty was a hero, but no… it’s not the fact that she’s the only hero, right? We wrap up almost 3,000 people who died that day, and we have to just remember them and say they’re all heroes, and many, many more,” Harry said. For 25 years, Minter never made the trip west to meet Ong’s family — until now. met Harry at Ong’s memorial. He then invited her to his home, where he shared some of the family’s memorabilia, including Ong’s dog tags and a letter from President Bush. He was also able to meet Ong’s mother, Gum, who is 99 years old. “You have a very brave daughter. I feel like I’m already a member of this family,” Minter told Gum. Go deeper with The Free Press on:
