Remembering Jack Buck’s powerful post-9/11 speech

ST. LOUIS – Wednesday marks 23 years since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on U.S. soil, one of the deadliest days in the nation’s history known as 9/11. Nearly 3,000 Americans lost their lives during the attacks.

Following 9/11, professional sports across the United States were put on hold for several days.

When the St. Louis Cardinals returned to action on Sept. 17, 2001, longtime broadcaster Jack Buck delivered a powerful speech that served as a moment of unity, reflection and healing in wake of the national tragedy.

Speaking to tens of thousands, Buck gave voice to nation’s collective feelings of grief, unity and resilience, while highlighting the impact of sports amid challenging times. WATCH THE FULL SPEECH HERE .

Buck’s earliest remarks stand out among many who remember his speech: “I don’t know about you, but as for me, the question has already been answered. Should we be here? Yes. Should we show others how to demonstrate our resolve? Yes. And we shall do it here this evening.”

After that, he read aloud a poem that embraced similar themes of healing, unity and strength. A 21-gun salute followed the poem.

The poem, verbatim, reads:

“Since this nation was founded under God,
more than 200 years ago,
We have been the bastion of freedom,
the light that keeps the free world aglow.

We do not covet the possessions of others;
We are blessed with the bounty we share.
We have rushed to help other nations;
anything…anytime…anywhere.

War is just not our nature,
We won’t start but we will end the fight.
If we are involved,
We shall be resolved,
To protect what we know is right.

We have been challenged by a cowardly foe,
Who strikes and then hides from our view.
With one voice we say,
‘We have no choice today,
There is only one thing to do.’

Everyone is saying the same thing and praying,
That we end these senseless moments we are living.
As our fathers did before,
We shall win this unwanted war,
And our children will enjoy the future we’ll be giving.”

Buck, a beloved figure in the St. Louis community and one of the most respected voices in baseball, encouraged people to stand strong in the face of adversity.

“Every word was memorable. Appropriate. Got you thinking about what happened and what’s going to happen,” said former Cardinals manager Tony LaRussa once said on the speech via Bally Sports Midwest . “It’s one thing to hear it, but when you actually see him deliver it, it’s a lot more meaningful.”

“I don’t think we realized the magnitude of what that poem was going to do and how far-reaching it was going to be,” said another former Cardinals manager Mike Matheny. “We knew it was something extremely special for us to have.”

Buck died less than a year after his post-9/11 speech, following a battle with cancer and Parkinson’s disease. He spent nearly 50 years in the Cardinals organization as the lead broadcaster on KMOX.

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