From Textbook to Real Life: Sharing My Brother’s Story to Students Who Weren’t Born When 9/11 Happened
Written by Silver Fox Twin Roy Williams
Why I’m Looking Forward to Visiting my Alma mater Jacksonville High School
Birmingham, Ala. -A year ago, my identical twin brother Troy was visiting me from Europe when our Jacksonville High School classmate, Anita Parris Corbin, invited the Silver Fox Williams Twins Troy & Roy to meet her students at Springville Middle School.
We shared something very personal with those young people: The story of our 9/11 hero brother, Army Major Dwayne Williams.
That experience stayed with me.
So as I prepare to return to Jacksonville for the 25th anniversary of 9/11, I’m especially looking forward to visiting my alma mater, Jacksonville High School, and meeting today’s students.
When September 11, 2001 happened, today’s generation of high school & college students weren’t alive yet.
For them, 9/11 is history they’ve read about in textbooks.
They’ve seen the images on television.
They’ve heard their teachers talk about it.
But I want them to know the human story behind the history & thr sacrifices made by 9/11 heroes that launched the war on terror to protect our freedoms.
Nearly 3,000 Americans were killed that day — including my oldest brother, Army Major Dwayne Williams in the Pentagon.
This Friday,, Jacksonville honors a hometown hero.
Dwayne wasn’t just a name in a history book.
He was my big brother.
He was a son, husband, father, athlete, soldier and friend.
And he dedicated his life to serving others.
That’s the lesson I hope to share:
Service matters.
Sacrifice matters.
And the choices we make can leave a legacy long after we’re gone.
Last year, Troy and I shared Dwayne’s story with middle school students.
This year, I’m coming home to share it with students at the high school where Dwayne and I grew up.
Twenty-five years later, I want a new generation to understand not only what happened on 9/11, but who we lost — and how they lived.
The nation remembers how Dwayne died.
But we will never forget how he lived.
This Friday, I’ll be back in Jacksonville to honor his life at the Major Dwayne Williams Pentagon Memorial.
We’re going to remember.
We’re going to teach.
And we’re going to Take the Day Back. 🇺🇸
#SilverFoxTwins #SilverFoxRoy #TakeTheDayBack #DwayneWilliams #MajorDwayneWilliams #91125 #NeverForget #JacksonvilleAlabama #JacksonvilleHighSchool #SpringvilleMiddleSchool #WilliamsLegacy #RememberHonorServe 🇺🇸
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