N001305
Wednesday, January 02, 2002 6:59 PM
Comments from a victim's son
My name is . My mother, , was killed during the
September 11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. I just wanted to
share with you some of my thoughts concerning the September 11 Compensatory
Fund.
I have a real problem with some of the methodology that has gone into
creating this fund. As a 31 year old adult I do not expect to receive any
economic windfall. I feel safe to say that my 29-year-old sister would
agree with me. But we have both lost someone extremely precious to us. I
understand that the primary focus of the relief efforts should be directed
to families with dependent children. But it is wrong to discount the loss
that my family must deal with.
My children, when I do have them, will never get to know their grandmother.
I will never again get to visit with my mother, nor will I be able to look
forward to our weekly conversations over the phone. My sister just got
married on July 28th. She was supposed to have dinner with my mother on
9/11 and pick out wedding proofs. My sister was cheated out of much of her
honeymoon, and the joy that would go along with sharing those moments with
our mother. To take people like my sister and I out of any formula used to
calculate the effects of the terrorist attack drastically underestimates
the hurt and loss that was caused.
I also strongly object to the practice of subtracting out life insurance
from any claim that will be granted to the families of the victims. How is
this at all pertinent to the loss that we have suffered? My mother planned
ahead and took out life insurance. This death benefit was bequeathed to
her grown children. This is my mother's gift to me and my sister. We
would receive this regardless of whether my family submits a claim to the
September 11 compensation fund. Choosing to subtract this money from the
award we would receive punishes the family of the victims. Those who had
the foresight, and the prudence, to plan for the future well being of their
families are being penalized. This is ridiculous. My stepfather should
not be penalized because my mother decided to take out a supplemental life
insurance policy that named her two grown children as beneficiaries. This
is just not right.
It was bad enough to learn that my mother was taken from us entirely too
soon. Then we were subjected to the barrage of media coverage that forced
us to relive this tragedy on a daily basis. Then we watched as many
charity efforts mismanaged their funds, chose not to distribute the funds
in a timely manner, or decided that families like mine were somehow not
worthy to receive them. Now our own government has come up with this
ludicrous policy. You can only imagine how frustrating and hurtful this
has been.
It is for the above-mentioned reasons that I doubt my stepfather,
, will submit a claim to your fund. While it would be immensely
healthier to be able to move past this entire experience, the illogical and
often arbitrary methods used to settle these potential lawsuits are a lot
to bear. I am sure our family will discuss this further in the coming
months, but I thought you should know the effects of the policies being
administered.
If you have any questions regarding this email, feel free to contact me.
My work number is . My home number is . My email address is .
Individual Comment