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Honoring Matthew Horning
Sep 10th
This is the fourth year that I’ve written about Matthew Horning on 9/11. I think of him often throughout the year, and all the more as the anniversary of the attacks approaches. I encourage you to go back and read my original tribute post, to learn some of the details about him.
Matthew Horning was at work on the 95th floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Center on 9/11/01. He was a database administrator for Marsh and McLennan, beginning his morning, making a living. He was 26 years old, and was about to propose to his beautiful girlfriend, Maura. Those cowards stole his life and his future. They stole a lifetime of dreams, plans, and memories.
So much has changed in the world since Matthew was murdered, but that day is forever seared into the American memory. People have debated the events… who was responsible, who wasn’t involved, and what we should do about it. We’ve fought wars, given opinions on radio talk shows and made films. The memory of 9/11 has been the catalyst for military and firefighting careers. “Terrorism” is a part of even children’s vocabularies. September 11th has changed America forever.
As I think of the best way to honor Matthew, I think my friend Joy said it best in a blog comment four years ago:
“… As our lives go on and the tributes end, may we pick up the mantle of freedom and not impose it on others, but live it out in our daily lives. May we see the unseen, may we feed the hungry, and clothe the naked, and touch our fellow man with love and hope. Loving one another is the greatest honor we can give those we lost.”
I strive to honor Matthew in this way, by loving others and defending freedom.
Matthew, you are not forgotten.
Remembering Matthew Horning, 7 years later
Sep 11th
Today I remember Matthew Horning.
Seven years ago this morning, Matthew was beginning his day at work in the North Tower of the World Trade Center. He never made it home.
Two years ago I joined an effort called the 2,996 Project to honor and remember those killed on 9/11. I was randomly assigned to pay tribute to Matthew. Since that time, I’ve made contact with some of Matthew’s family and friends. I’m so proud to do my small part to keep his memory alive.
This morning at work, I put a picture of Matthew up on the board outside my office door with a small note of remembrance. Living in Tennessee, most of the people I know never met anyone directly involved with 9/11. My hope is that this small gesture will be a point of connection. Matthew was a real person – someone who loved, hoped, dreamed, laughed, cheered, argued, believed, worked, and loved some more. There is a huge Matthew-shaped hole in many people’s hearts that will never be filled.
I never met him, but I will remember him every September 11th, and many days in between.
I remember.
Sep 11th
Last year, I wrote about Matthew Horning. I vowed then that I would personally remember Matthew each year on 9/11.
This morning at 7:30 when I stepped outside with my dogs, I thought for a minute about the events that transpired six years ago today, and about Matthew and the things he must have done at exactly that time of morning, preparing for work, thinking about his girlfriend, planning his day…
Then I looked up and saw that the most beautiful rainbow was stretched across the sky. 
I smiled. The rainbow reminded me of promise. The color and beauty of Matthew’s life lives on, in the memories of those who knew him and in the dreams of those who never did.
Matthew, you are not forgotten.
The 2,996 Project: I Remember Matthew D. Horning
Sep 10th
On the five year anniversary of September 11, 2001, I remember Matthew Douglas Horning.
For several weeks, I’ve scoured the internet looking for some insight into who this young man was. I know I was assigned a 9/11 victim at random, but as I searched, I was astonished how much Matthew and I had in common. Matthew was a guy I would’ve loved to have known. He was a “techie” like me, and a guitarist just like my husband. He was born just a month before my husband. He was young, in love, and passionate about life.
Matthew Horning lived in Hoboken, NJ and was a database administrator for Marsh & McLennan insurance company. He was in love with his girlfriend (and soon to be fiancee) Maura Landry and dreamed of happiness with her and their future family. About Matthew’s simple and sincere dreams, his girlfriend remarked, “We didn’t have to live in the biggest house on the street, but the people inside had to be happy.”
Matthew was a graduate of James Madison University. He was a humble, selfless and giving man who loved animals. He was a devoted fan of his favorite New York sports teams, the Mets and Jets. He loved Star Wars and aspired one day to write a fantasy novel or comic book.
Matthew was at work on the 95th floor of the north tower of the World Trade Center when terrorists took his life. According to USA Today, he survived the initial impact of the hijacked jet and sent text messages to a colleague outside the building until shortly before the tower collapsed. Among them, his father said, was the message, “Tell Maura I love her.”
According to USA Today, after forensic teams sifted through remains at ground zero, Matthew’s family received a few of his possessions and three small fragments of his body. The rest of his ashen remains have inexplicably been placed in the Fresh Kills landfill along with those of hundreds of other 9/11 victims. As a result, Matthew’s parents, Diane and Kurt Horning, have started an advocacy group called WTC Families for Proper Burial. According to the group’s website, they “seek to inform the general public of the injustice of leaving the ashen remains of those killed at the WTC in a garbage dump, the Fresh Kills landfill in Staten Island.” Despicably, Mayor Bloomberg and the City of New York have taken the position that the ashen remains should not be removed from the landfill.
Despite the way that Matthew’s remains have been treated, his spirit lives on. After meeting Matthew’s mother at a memorial service in October 2001, Mario and Karen Canzoneri promised Mrs. Horning that their next Red Cross therapy dog would be named Matthew. A year later, that promise came true. The Canzoneri’s new Golden Retriever was named Mattie (AKC Matthew D. Horning the Second). Mattie carries a picture of Matthew around his neck.
Matthew, I wish I could have known you. The world is a better place because you were in it, if just for a little while.
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