I'll never ever forget that day. I was less than 6 miles from the blast and thought there was an earthquake. On day 2 of the recovery efforts I was down there delivering new damaged refrigerators that worked fine, donated by the company I worked for at the time for body parts. I got much closer than I needed to be, and I had it easy, I wasn't digging through the rubble.
I lost a neighbor that lived directly across the street from me and a friend that was a coworker who had quit the place I worked to go to work for the Credit Union. I was also a part time Real Estate Agent at the time, and lost a couple aquaintences that I worked with several times in the HUD office. My bro was an Army recruiter at the time, and he lost 3 of his coworkers. My mother also a full time RE Agent, lost a few coworker/friends in the HUD office.
Just to get an idea of how small the world is... I was born and raised in Norwalk/Downey California. Moved to OK in Dec of 90. Just about 3 years ago, my daughters mother got with me and asked if I knew that our common friends Mike and Kevin from Norwalk had moved to OKC/Moore. No, I didn't know that. It didn't hit me immediately, but it didn't take long to figure out, their little bro and sis, were 2 of the surviving kids in the daycare center. The little sis pretty much made a full recovery and was in the hospital for 8 days Their little bro, not so much. 128 days or so in the hospital with head trauma. He's as right as he'll ever get and made a remarkable recovery. He can walk and talk now, but he'll never be 100% and requires constant medical treatment and therapy to this day, as well as a couple of the other 4 of the surviving 6 kids.
I've never stopped and visited the memorial or gone into the museum. Driving by it is enough for me. I have gone into the underground parking garage under the memorial that was originally part of the Murrah building, to jumpstart or tow cars out of there and I don't even like doing that.
