Sean Rooney was working in the south tower of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.
He was on the 105th floor when the planes hit. Amid the chaos, he called his wife, Beverly, the love of his life since high school.
Talking to her kept him calm as he searched desperately for a way out. But everywhere Sean turned, there was smoke and fire. He was trapped.
"We stopped talking about escape routes, and then we just began talking about all the happiness we shared during our lives together," Beverly said.
Soon, Beverly heard a deafening noise on the other end of the line. The towers were collapsing. Just like that, Sean was gone.
Every year, the tragedy of 9/11 grows into a more and more distant memory for many of us.
But for the families of the nearly 3,000 people killed in the attacks, the pain of that day can never be erased.
"I like to think of myself as living life for both of us now," Beverly said of her late husband.
In 2009, Beverly herself died in an unrelated plane crash. But before she died, she shared this incredible statement about her experience. And through it, the memory of Sean and the thousands of other victims can live forever.