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TRANSCRIPT:
Episode no. 552
August 30, 2002
LUCKY SEVERSON, guest anchor: Coming up, Shanksville, Pennsylvania -- how a tiny town has been emotionally and spiritually effected by 9-11.
Reverend RON EMERY (Shanksville United Methodist Church): All we knew was that something terrible had happened to the nation and we were a part of it.
SEVERSON: And mothers behind bars, some for murder -- bad role models or mothers whose kids need them?
LATOYA: This gives them a chance to bond with me and know that I still love them. Even though that I'm behind bars and I'm locked up doesn't mean that I don't love them.
SEVERSON: Plus, a place of quiet and contemplation for people who love or who have lost their dog.
Welcome. I'm Lucky Severson, sitting in for Bob Abernethy. It's nice to have you with us.
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LUCKY SEVERSON: This Labor Day weekend delegates from around the world are laboring over some massive problems, how to fight global poverty and protect the environment. The United Nations World Summit on sustainable development opened in Johannesburg, South Africa, this week. Religious groups are involved in many ways, from lobbying on public policy issues to sponsoring prayer and medication services. The more than 40,000 participants hope to hammer a final call to action next week. From Italy, Pope John Paul II said he is praying for the summit. He urged the delegates to advance economic, social and environmental justice.
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LUCKY SEVERSON: Meanwhile, Vatican officials announced this week that John Paul will not be traveling to the Philippines in January. The 82-year-old Pope had been considering a trip there to attend the World Meeting of Families. Church officials did not give an official reason for the decision. Vatican watchers believe it is probably because of John Paul's increasingly fragile health.
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LUCKY SEVERSON: As a nation gears up for the one-year anniversary of September 11, there's already been a barrage of media coverage from Ground Zero and the Pentagon -- and comparatively little from Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Shanksville is a small southern Pennsylvania town where the fourth hijacked plane crashed after taking off from Newark. The "Let's Roll" heroism of the passengers aboard Flight 93 inspired the nation, but few Americans know of the profound spiritual impact of 9-11 on the rural community where the plane went down. Kim Lawton has our special report from Shanksville.
KIM LAWTON: It's supposed to look like Jerusalem during the time of Jesus, but it's really Shanksville, Pennsylvania, in the year 2002. The churches in town are sponsoring a community-wide Bible school. Local kids are learning about the life and times of Jesus, and for a while forgetting about the tumultuous times of their own town over the past year.
It's been nearly 12 months since United Flight 93 slammed into a strip mine field just outside Shanksville, killing all 44 people aboard and shattering a peaceful existence of this remote, rural community.
Reverend RON EMERY (Shanksville United Methodist Church): All we knew was that something terrible had happened to the nation and we were a part of it, and the community was sort of in shock and disbelief. Who would have ever thought on national news that you would have heard the words New York City, Washington, D.C., and Shanksville, Pennsylvania, in the same sentence?
LAWTON: But Shanksville is irrevocably tied to the horror of September 11. The fourth hijacked plane crashed on the edge of a wooded grove here at a speed of more than 500 miles per hour, burrowing a crater nearly 30 feet deep and scattering debris for miles. Less than 10 percent of the human remains were ever recovered.
Today the crater has been filled and a flag marks the spot where the plane went down. Access to the crash area is still restricted.
Unidentified Man: Against the woods is where it went down.
LAWTON: But thousands of visitors have been coming to a temporary memorial on a hill overlooking the site. Shanksville itself continues to deal with the impact of the unthinkable.
Shanksville was founded in the late 1700s and local residents say it's always been pretty much what it is now: a close-knit community with a school, a post office, a general store and seven churches -- all of them Protestant.
The population here stands at 245. Many residents live on sprawling farms down country lanes. It's a quiet place where it's not unusual to see an Amish buggy riding down Main Street. It was a largely isolated community -- until last September. On a sunny morning shortly before 10 a.m., Flight 93 crashed just behind Clara Hinton's home, where she and her husband lead a Churches of Christ house church.
CLARA HINTON: And actually the plane went down, as you look right into the woods from here, less than a mile. We lost our innocence the day 9-11 occurred. And by that I would say we kind of were not even a spot on a map. And now when you mention Shanksville, we're a spot on the map and before we didn't even know if we were connected, kind of, to the rest of the world.
LAWTON: Now the world is rumbling in and the crash site has become a place of pilgrimage, a shrine on sacred ground.
Reverend ROBERT WAY (St. Mark Evangelical Lutheran Church): That is a cemetery in the form of a cremation. The majority of the bodies have not been exhumed from that area. They're dust that is still surrounding that area. So that is a cemetery to me. We treat death that way.
LAWTON: So far there are no definitive plans for a permanent memorial. Congress, the U.S. Parks Service, the county, the town and family members of the victims have been discussing possibilities. Religion professor Edward Linenthal is a consultant for the National Park Service on historic sites.
Professor EDWARD LINENTHAL (University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh): Memorial issues are almost by definition razor's edge issues. Its burial places for people and yet it also is part of a national landscape. What does it mean to call a place sacred ground? How do you do it equitably with the land owners?
LAWTON: While the discussions continue, local residents have acted.
Prof. LINENTHAL: The townspeople in Shanksville and surrounding Shanksville see themselves, I think, as moral stewards of this site and feel very strongly that they have to preserve, protect and guard this site for the family members.
LAWTON: Donna Glessner was born in Shanksville and attends the United Methodist church.
DONNA GLESSNER: And then the area where the crater was is right at the edge of the trees.
LAWTON: She organized local church volunteers to be "ambassadors" at the site, to provide information and answer questions.
Ms. GLESSNER: It's our responsibility to make sure it isn't commercialized and that it retains its sacred character. It's really a cemetery down there.
LAWTON: But some commercial activities are already springing up, something that troubles many here. A few miles out of town, a Catholic priest from Altoona is turning an old abandoned church into a Flight 93 memorial chapel. He says it will be a nonsectarian place of prayer, but some locals fear it will turn into a commercial venture. And they worry about who else may be moving in.
Rev. WAY: The last thing we want is a McDonald's, Burger King, Hyatt Regency, any of that to kind of infiltrate, to become part of what this community is not.
LAWTON: There's also a sense of protectiveness for the victim's families. Many here have established close relationships with them, even opening their homes. Dave McCall is a retired school counselor. He was a volunteer "spiritual caregiver" to the families in the days immediately after 9-11. With their permission, he's written a book about it. Profits will go to a charitable trust.
DAVE MCCALL (Author, "From Tragedy to Triumph"): Some were just in shock. Some people needed us to listen. Some needed us to maybe say a kind word. So I guess I ask the Lord this morning to keep me open to your needs and show me and tell me what to do.
LAWTON: Many in Shanksville say the tragedy in their backyard has left a deep spiritual impact.
Ms. HINTON: It made us very aware. It made me on a personal level very aware that things -- bad things do happen, even here. That, yes, evil does exist in this world and evil does occur, and evil occurred less than a mile from our home.
Ms. GLESSNER: We're not -- at least I am not -- versed on world events and religious tensions in the Middle East. And, you know, for me to understand that there's this kind of evil in the world, this kind of hatred? I didn't know that kind of hatred existed.
LAWTON: In the past few months, local ministers have seen an increase in requests for pastoral counseling. They say that tragedy doesn't appear to have threatened people's faith, but it has raised difficult spiritual questions about the nature of God and about good and evil -- questions with no easy answers.
Rev. EMERY: If it wasn't for God, I wouldn't have gotten through most of these situations. It's been very draining. Probably the most challenging thing I've ever had to come up against in my life. And I just pray to God that these decisions that I've made have been the right ones.
LAWTON: Some experts worry about the long term impact of 9-11.
Prof. LINENTHAL: I remain skeptical that healthy human communities can be built on piles of murdered bodies. I think the corrosive effects of these events, I think that the toxic impact of these events are enduring.
LAWTON: But people in Shanksville say some good has emerged. Lutheran minister Robert Way moved here just 42 days before the crash. He's a construction-worker turned pastor, and this is his first church assignment.
Rev. WAY: I honestly do not believe that the people of this area would have welcomed me as openly as they have already had it not been for the flight. I think it really has framed what my ministry has been, but also helped opened, not only myself to them, but their lives to me. And that's been the greatest blessing.
LAWTON: Over and over again people here say they've seen the hand of God at work.
Ms. HINTON: I believe God had a lot to do with the timing of that plane and where, if it had to go down, where it went down, where not another soul was harmed or hurt. I -- that strengthened my faith so much, it's incredible.
Ms. GLESSNER: Some people have said they believe that God directed the plane to this place. I don't know if I'm willing to go that far because I think that was evil at work. But I think once the plane crash occurred here, the people that had to take responsibility for various tasks were empowered to do the right thing.
LAWTON: There is concern there that Shanksville has become too defined by the crash of Flight 93. Many hope after the one-year anniversary things may return more to normal. But no one knows exactly what normal means anymore in a place forever altered by the events of 9-11. I'm Kim Lawton in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
SEVERSON: Our Web site has lots of additional material about Shanksville, including special essays and photographs and more of Kim's interviews. Next week on RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY we'll continue our 9-11 anniversary coverage with reports on religion and grieving and on the concept of sacred ground.
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LUCKY SEVERSON: The scene may look perfectly ordinary -- children playing games and having picnics with their mothers. But in Dwight, Illinois, the games and picnics are inside a prison's walls. The mothers are inmates -- some of them convicted murderers. Victims' rights organizations call it coddling criminals. The mothers call it bonding. And this particular prison says it is a good thing.
Unidentified Woman #1: I'm kind of nervous, but it's going to be a good day. I can feel it, it's going to be a real good day. Because I know they're going to be like, "Mommy, mommy, mommy."
DAN GIBBONS (Day Camp Coordinator): Okay. Ladies, you've all been here. You know the drill. We're going to go out and get the kids. Ladies, if you walk back and your child is not here, that doesn't mean they're not coming. They might be a few minutes late.
SEVERSON: Most women in this holding room are doing hard time for serious crimes, and they are all moms.
DIANE: I've been praying and asking God to open doors and to bring her here. And she's here.
Offscreen Voice #1: Here they come. Here they come. Here they come.
Offscreen Voice #2: Oh, my God. There's my daughters.
Offscreen Voice #3: Yeah, they're showing up.
LATOYA: Hey yah, big boy. I love you. How you doing?
Unidentified Child #1: Hi.
SEVERSON: This is the state of Illinois' maximum-security prison for women, the Dwight Correctional Center. It's a very special day for inmates and their kids -- a day camp -- the prison has sponsored the camp for 14 years -- one of the few of its kind in the U.S. A lovely spot for a picnic, if you ignore the razor wire. Remember, this is inside maximum security.
It seems especially important to capture the moment. One picture for mom, one to take home to remember her by. Audrey is serving 92 years for murder. The sentence may be even more difficult for her daughter, Monica.
AUDREY: I've been gone out of her life since she was four and a half years old. And she misses me. I miss her.
SEVERSON: The thing that makes Monica the saddest about having her mom in prison.
MONICA: I have to be home Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Sunday and not have a mom in my house, and not have a mom that's raising me at home.
SEVERSON: Tiffany committed first-degree murder. Her release date is 2012.
Anthony has been suspended from school 27 times for fighting.
ANTHONY: I get teased a lot a school because she's in jail. And if they would be like, "Well, your mom is a criminal and all that." And I say, "No, it's not really. She's a good person, but she just made one mistake."
SEVERSON: Latoya is serving eight years for robbery.
LATOYA: This gives them a chance to bond with me and know that I still love them. Even though that I'm behind bars and I'm locked up doesn't mean that I don't love them.
SEVERSON: Carolyn, first degree murder during an armed robbery, out in 2004. The law required that her sons, Erik and Lorenzo, be adopted by their foster parents. But she's their mom.
CAROLYN: I just wanted to kick myself, you know, not only did I suffer. It would be okay, maybe, if I hadn't had kids and I would have just straight paid for my crime. But to know that they have to suffer behind me.
SEVERSON: Carolyn's kids are not alone. At last count there were seven million children in this country, most under 18, with a parent in jail or prison or on parole or probation.
Dan Gibbons coordinates the day camp and he gave up a good paying job to do it because he thinks it is so important.
Mr. GIBBONS: I'm a firm believer that the kids do time as well and I think harder time. You know, by law we have to feed these women three times a day, give them clothing, shelter and good medical care, and that's by law. And these kids don't get to enjoy those same amenities on the outside. So for me the program is about the kids.
SEVERSON: Authorities rarely ask convicts about their families, their children. And it turns out that keeping families connected may go a long way towards ending the cycle of crime.
The crime link between generations is striking. Half of all kids in custody have a family member in jail or prison.
Mr. GIBBONS: I think that breaking the chain is important, either that or we just have to keep building prisons as fast as we can. And we don't want to do that. Who would want to do that?
Warden LYNN CAHILL-MASCHING (Warden): I know a lot of moms whose daughters have come to the institution. I know that.
SEVERSON: Warden Cahill-Masching believes that severing an inmate from her children only increases the chances a child will end up like its mother, who is very often the only parent the child can turn to.
Warden CAHILL-MASCHING: This is about the next generation. This is about the benefits to the children and to the family unit. The community wins in as much as most of these moms are going back into the community. So while they're here, why don't we see what we can do to tie the kids to the whole family?
SEVERSON: The warden has heard the criticism from victims' rights groups who think women convicted of violent crimes should not be coddled, and skeptics who think criminal moms can't possibly serve as role models for their children.
TIFFANY: A lot of people seem to feel that way, though. That you're here for a violent crime, that you shouldn't have the opportunity to spend with your family or your children.
SEVERSON: Tiffany has taken six years of college level classes and thinks she knows better than anyone the difference between right and wrong.
TIFFANY: I told him that my actions were wrong. I took a life. That's something that I'll deal with the rest of my life, even when I'm out of this place in nine years. So when he has problems I tell him not to react in a violent way, to try to walk away or even try to talk it out.
ANTHONY: I use to get kicked out of school a lot for fighting. And then I started telling my mom about it, and she just said to start walking away. And after that I just started staying in school a lot more.
SEVERSON (to Anthony): How are you doing in school?
ANTHONY: Good. Straight A's again.
AUDREY: Want to go play some basketball?
SEVERSON: The mothers try to give their kids things that were often missing in their own lives, like moms and a sense of family and God.
AUDREY: What was I just telling you, baby? That God is good. To keep praying. Pray for me to come home.
Woman #1: "It's Aladdin," he said, and he has the lamp."
SEVERSON: Reading is another way mom and kids stay connected. Sponsored by an interfaith ministry called Aunt Mary's Storybook Project, mothers are allowed to narrate books on tape so their kids can hear mom reading a bedtime story at home.
AUDREY: "She cuddled up to him."
TIFFANY: He's kept every tape since he was like four or five. And if I couldn't call -- if we were on lockdown or something, he would have that tape of my voice. So it's a positive thing.
LATOYA: Okay, baby. It's going to be all right.
SEVERSON: Latoya's boy hurt his hand so his mom practices what she's learned from parenting class, required schooling for all moms to come to day camp.
LATOYA: Wipe your face. Wipe your tears. Momma don't like to see you cry because I feel sad, okay?
SEVERSON: The day rushes by. And at the end of it moms know what it feels like to be a mom.
CAROLYN: It's draining. It's a good tired feeling, you know. It's something that I know is good. I got some joy out of it and it's just like hard pressed labor, you know, so it feels good.
TSUNG: Momma, are we going to leave camp right now?
LATOYA: In a little while. You'll come back next year. Next year is the last camp and then after that I'll be home. You don't want to leave? It's going to be okay. Give me a hug. Did you have fun?
TSUNG: Mommy, can we come back to camp tomorrow?
Mr. GIBBONS: Okay, I need the kids to step through here.
SEVERSON: What they believe strongly here is that even though they have committed terrible crimes, moms on the inside can often do more than anyone on the outside to break the cycle of crime.
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LUCKY SEVERSON: There is a place in Vermont, a very small place, called "The Dog Chapel." It was built by a dog lover and was designed for people who feel compassion and affection for the dogs they have, and sadness for the dogs they once had. Deryl Davis reports.
DERYL DAVIS: Vermont artist Stephen Huneck has always loved dogs -- so much he has devoted his life and career to crafting dog likeness in all sorts of shapes and places. Following a serious illness and near death experience, Huneck was inspired to create his most ambitious and most unusual project to date, a dog chapel. It's a place for people to enjoy their dogs in the present and remember those from the past.
STEPHEN HUNECK: I really have learned something profound about being gentle, about sharing, about taking care of someone else. I've learned about love and real spirituality from my relationship with my dogs. I wanted a place where people could come with their dogs when they were thinking about putting them to sleep and be able to be in a situation that reminded them of the church they would go to if a family member had died.
CINDY GAGNON: We put Gus down in February. We did everything together. He came to work with me. We meditated together. We walked in the woods almost every day. He was a wonderful hugger. He'd lean right in and grunt and "mmm." You know, that kind of thing. And when I put the picture up I had this great visual of all these other dogs who were with him now. Yeah, miss those hugs.
Mr. HUNECK: Oh, this is so much fun. Oh, this is so much fun.
Dogs can really teach us a lot about enjoying the simple things in life.
CHRISTY TOMLINSON (with dog Kayla): I believe God believes these are his creatures just like we are. And they deserve the same love and affection and care and compassion than any human being would be entitled to, right, Kayla?
Mr. HUNECK: I believe that God is in everything. I think that true spirituality is just recognizing the godness of everything. If I go to a place called heaven, I would be very, very disappointed if my dogs weren't there, too.
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LUCKY SEVERSON: On this calendar this week the Jewish High Holidays begin at sundown next Friday. It's a 10-day period of prayer and repentance, beginning with Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, and culminating in Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. During this time Jews seek forgiveness from God and each other for wrongs committed in the past year.
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LUCKY SEVERSON: And Hindus and Hare Krishnas around the world are celebrating the birthday of Lord Krishna, one of the most commonly worshiped deities in Hinduism and the supreme being for Hare Krishnas.
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LUCKY SEVERSON: And finally, in the heart of Russia, an unorthodox way to spread the Russian Orthodox faith. Floating church boats are traveling the Don River, ministering to residents in every port. During 70 years of Communism, many churches in the region were destroyed or fell into disrepair. Now most villages are too poor to fix the churches or support a priest and many towns are virtually inaccessible during the harsh winters. So in the short summer thaw circuit sailing priests have been bringing the sacrament to the people. The church boats cover as many ports as possible before the Don freezes over again.
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LUCKY SEVERSON: That's our program for now. I'm Lucky Severson. Bob Abernethy will be back next week. To find out more about RELIGION & ETHNICS NEWSWEEKLY log on to PBS.org or America Online keyword: PBS. As we leave you this week, more scenes from the floating Russian church.
 Back to Article Finder: Stories by Week
© 2002 EDUCATIONAL BROADCASTING CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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