[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 132 (Tuesday, September 15, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1283]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




LOOKING BACK: YOUNG WOMAN'S LETTER TO HER MOTHER LOST ON SEPTEMBER 11, 
                                  2001

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                          HON. JOHN B. LARSON

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 15, 2015

  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, as we remember those we lost 
14 years ago, I submit one of the most poignant expressions I've seen 
since that grave day. Written by Anjunelly Jean-Pierre as a letter to 
her mother, whose life was lost on 9/11, this moving tribute both shows 
how inspiring her mom was to her and how her memory will be 
everlasting.

                          Letters to the Lost

                      (Collected by Sheila Weller)

       On a clear day 10 years ago, nearly 3,000 people died. They 
     were the sisters, brothers, boyfriends and mothers of young 
     women who mourn them still--and who write intimate messages 
     to them here.
       Dear Mommy, last night I made a whole chicken with 
     vegetables for dinner. You would have been proud.
       My children, Brianna, seven, and Elijah, eight--the 
     children you never met--loved it.
       When I cook, I remember the meals you made. I was the only 
     kid who had manicotti for lunch on the first-grade school 
     trip. Everyone else had a turkey or peanut-butter-and-jelly 
     sandwich, but you were then the housekeeper for an Italian 
     family, so you learned to make things they liked. Eventually 
     your cooking talent landed you--an immigrant from the 
     Dominican Republic with an elementary school education who 
     had to learn English from scratch--a chef's job at Cantor 
     Fitzgerald, on the 105th floor of the World Trade Center.
       In the summer of 2001, I was planning to join the military. 
     And then September 11 happened. It took me years to come to 
     terms with the fact that you were gone. I actually kept your 
     phone number in my cell phone until 2009! I had to keep you 
     ``alive'' so that I myself could survive.
       But after you died, I tapped into the passion for cooking 
     you'd instilled in me. I went to culinary school, then was a 
     sous-chef on Emeril Lagasse's show Emeril Green. Now I have 
     my own catering business. The meal my clients like best is 
     the Dominican rice-and-peas dish you made me as comfort food. 
     I guess the love and heritage comes through.
       I wish you could see your grandchildren. Brianna looks so 
     much like I did at her age. As for Elijah, he has your 
     perfectionism. I remember you said, ``Children should have 
     names that are strong and great in meaning.'' I gave Brianna 
     her middle name, Maxima, in honor of you. And to keep your 
     spirit alive, every Friday night we have tea and a relaxing 
     talk about life, just like you and I did, to mark the end of 
     a long week of work and school.
       Being a single mom running a one-person business hasn't 
     always been easy. I sometimes find myself driving boxes of 
     cheesecakes and pound cakes to a customer and then dashing 
     off to pick up the kids at school. But you, too, were a 
     single mom, one who'd conquered so many challenges. You've 
     remained my guiding force. And you always will be.
       Anjunelly Jean-Pierre, 29, of Dumfries, Virginia, lost her 
     mother, Maxima. Today she is a mom and owner of Max & Jax 
     Cafe.

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