I have the honor of highlighting one victim of the September 11, 2001 attack on the United States. His, and the 2995 other DIRECT victims died 5 years ago. 5 years! The memory of this event is etched on my mind like it was yesterday. It's not cliche. What I thought was a joke turned out to be a horrific, spineless slaughter of innocent lives.
Now, 5 years later, the heroes of 9.11.01 are facing their own challenges with lingering health issues related to their service following the destruction. The total toll of lives lost to this calculated, premeditated act will probably never be known. But we can always remember...
...the pain caused.
...the families impacted.
...the relationships broken.
...the lives lost.
One of those lives was Swede Joseph Chevalier. He was born 31 years ago. It's not lost on me that he and I were approximately the same age. He never made it to 31. Swede was murdered when he was 26.
Swede was employed by Cantor Fitzgerald as an Equities Trader in one of the World Trade Center buildings. He also had a landscaping business on his family’s 15-acre estate. He shared a love of adventure with his father, Vernon Chevalier, who said the two went mountain biking down a single-track path from the top of Pikes Peak in Colorado several years ago. It was a narrow path with 300-foot drops. “It was dangerous, but he loved it,” his father said.
Swede lived in Locust, NJ after graduating from Cornell University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences in 1998. He spent two years as president of his fraternity, Phi Delta Theta. In addition to his father Vernon and sisters, Tylia and Brittany, he is survived by his mother, Elaine, and his companion at the time, Melissa Markewich. He is also survived by his maternal grandparents, Joseph and Helen Polguy of Sayreville, and his fraternal grandfather, Vernon Chevalier Sr. of Sayreville
Swede was Catholic and was memorialized in such fashion upon his death. I pray that Swede was received into the arms of Jesus Christ upon his death.
Note, I'd encourage you to visit the 2996 website that has coordinated the effort to honor each and every victim from the 9.11.01 attacks. They'll have links to other sites that have additional memorials.
References:
His fraternity's memorial: Phi Delta Theta - This tribute page is very touching. They have stories about Swede growing up and more information about what he was like.
Swede Joseph Chevalier, 26, Locust, N.J
http://www.unitedinmemory.net/quilt.php?quilt=503 - This is a page of a quilt that was constructed in Swede's honor. It has some additional pictures of him with other folks.