‘It’s hallowed ground’: Two veterans contemplate the impact of 9/11 at the National Infantry Museum

COLUMBUS, Ga. ( WRBL ) — The National Infantry Museum did not have a formal gathering to remember the tragic events of 9/11. But that did not stop museum visitors from contemplating the impact of that day and the decades-long aftermath.

Wednesday morning Ed Faude and George Hayden were walking the grounds of the National Infantry Museum.

The site of a steel beam from one of the World Trade Center twin towers sparked powerful memories for the two retired Marines and Vietnam veterans.

“I see people jumping,” Hayden said.

“I see the plane crashing into the tower,” said Faude.

The pair came to the museum from Macon, unaware of what they were going to experience.

“We didn’t realize when we left that we were going to this place on 9-11,” said Hayden. “You got this kind of chill.”

The museum’s walls have the names of the 7,068 soldiers, Marines and Airmen killed fighting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Their sacrifice was sparked by the 9/11 attacks on American soil.

Faude says the museum, like the Vietnam Memorial, is sacred.

“It’s hallowed ground,” Faude said. “These people all died serving their country. They were honoring all of us protecting our country.”

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