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Faustino Apostol - A 9-11 Tribute

Posted by theobamayoudontknow on September 10, 2009 at 8:35 PM

September 11, 2009

I decided this year to help out and write a tribute to one of the fallen from 9-11. I thought that after 8 years I would be able to handle the emotional strain of that day and so I asked Dale Roe to choose one for me. I?m glad that I was able to create a tribute and for the opportunity to thank one of the brave souls that died and even more honored that he chose for me a Firefighter. A true hero that died in the line of duty trying to save those that were trapped in Tower One.

Faustino Apostol, 55, was a 23-year FDNY veteran and his unit was one of the first to arrive at the scene. A chief aide in Battalion 2 he had joked that he would quit only when the job stopped being fun. Faustino had been married to his high school sweetheart for 33 years and had two grandsons, Riley Thomas and Michael Thomas born just six days apart. His wife and he promptly converted a room in their Annadale home into a nursery, complete with fire engine baby sheets, hats and trucks.

Today the family struggles with how they will convey Mr. Apostol's humor, youthfulness, and loving nature to the 18-month-old boys as they grow up. "It would probably take me a year to write down everything I wanted to explain to my son and even those words probably wouldn't be enough," said Deborah Apostol.

The fateful day of September 11th 2001 is a day that we can never forget. We were attacked without a declaration of war against an enemy that had declared a jihad against us. The cowardly attack left Americans angered but not defeated. On that day Faustino was on duty with Engine 55 in the SoHo section of Manhattan, where he had worked since 1998. His unit was among the first to arrive at the scene. Soon after the first hijacked plane slammed into Tower One, Faustino phoned his wife and told her the situation was under control and he was OK. Faustino realized that his brother firefighters were entering the tower itself, he grabbed his gear and joined them.

As terror and horror rained down around Engine 55, they were hard at assisting in the rescue of over 25,000 people that day, as people swarmed out of the burning tower, the firefighters kept climbing until the very end assisting people down the stairwells to safety. With abandon for their own lives, the men of Engine 55 helped save thousands of people until 10:29 that morning. In 10 seconds all fell silent, Tower One collapsed to the ground. Lt. Freund, 46, and the other members of his crew, firefighters Faustino Apostol, 56, Stephen Russell, 38, Robert Lane, 30, and Christopher Mozzillo, 27, all perished at that moment.

I like so many others saw Tower One fall and I knew in my heart that so many were still trapped inside. I prayed, cried and vowed to never forget that day and my feelings of loss and commitment to remember these innocents has never faltered. He gave his life in the ultimate sacrifice and his memory should never be forgotten.

We give our thanks to him for his bravery and selflessness to protect others and I say a prayer for him and his family. He was in the truest sense of the word an American that knew that true meaning of To Serve.

Faustino Apostol's funeral was held on Saturday October 1st, 2001 at the Virginia Funeral Chapel, Dongan Hills, with the mass at 10:45 a.m. in Holy Child Church. The burial was at the Moravian Cemetery. May God give you rest and peace in heaven.