The speakers for the inaugural “Flight 93 Speaker Series” have been announced.
Flight 93 family members Ken Nacke and Ed Root will be the featured guests at the inaugural “Flight 93 Speaker Series” event on May 27-28 at Flight 93 National Memorial in Somerset County. Ken’s brother, Louis J. “Joey” Nacke, was a passenger on Flight 93 on September 11, 2001. Ed’s cousin, Lorraine Bay, was a United Airlines flight attendant. Ken and Ed will speak at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 27 and at 1 p.m. on Sunday, May 28. The events will be held at the Learning Center, adjacent to the Flight 93 National Memorial Visitor Center.
Moderators of the Speaker Series will be Tom McMillan, a member of the board of directors of the Friends of Flight 93, and Robert Franz, a park guide at Flight 93 National Memorial.
New this year, the Flight 93 Speaker Series is a joint effort of the National Park Service and the Friends of Flight 93 National Memorial. There will be four such events on weekends throughout the summer, all free of charge to the general public. The summer-long series is presented by Somerset Trust.
Future Speaker Series events will feature first responders and others involved in the aftermath of the September 11th crash in Somerset County, as well as Flight 93 family members.
Additional Flight 93 Speaker Series events are planned in June, July and August:
June 17, 18 – Wally Miller, Somerset County coroner, who oversaw the crash site and helped family members organize the “Families of Flight 93.”
July 22 – first responders John Weir of PBS Coal, which owned part of the crash site; Louis Veitz, unit supervisor of the Pa. State Police forensic mapping unit during the investigation; and Stacey Schmidt, one of the first state troopers to reach the site on 9/11.
August 19, 20 – family members Deborah Borza (mother of passenger Deora Bodley) and Calvin Wilson (brother-in-law of First Officer LeRoy Homer).