On September 11, 2001, we lost almost 3,000 amazing people in the Twin Towers, the Pentagon, and on Flight 93. I've been told that for my generation, 9/11 is like the JFK assassination of my parent's generation. For so many of us impacted, the memory is vivid and detailed. If a conversation starts with "so, what do you remember about 9/11?" The answer will generally come tumbling out in great detail and with tears.
So this is my bankers’ story. Please allow me to take you back in time…
I was 35. We were living in Charlotte, North Carolina. Our 4 kids ranged in age from 6 to newborn. I was an executive with First Union Bank. The merger with Wachovia had just been consummated, but we still very much identified ourselves as First Union. Today, the bank is known as Wells Fargo.
Weather-wise, It was a crisp, blue-sky day. It was one of those unusual late-summer, mid-Atlantic days reminding you that fall is just around the corner. I recall a deep azure and cloudless blue sky. Absolutely stunning.
I was leading a Mortgage and Home Equity banking business. We were located in the massive CIC building in North Charlotte. The day started normally - but by 8:30a or so the horrific, unforgettable images filled our office television screens. I was a member of the CIC leadership team - which had representation from all the major banking organizations located in the building. We were extremely concerned. It was not just the shock of what we saw unfolding on television. We quickly became aware of 2 highly relevant and scary facts suggesting potential follow-up attacks:
The terrorist motivation was to disrupt the U.S. financial system and
At the time, the CIC was known as the 2nd largest single-employer building in the U.S. Second to the already-attacked Pentagon.
The CIC was a high-value terrorist target. The ten thousand or so souls in the CIC were like sitting ducks, much the way the U.S. Navy's Pacific Fleet was just before Japan attacked Pearl Harbor... and we all remembered how that turned out...
We came to a quick resolution - distributing our peeps to the local roads would dramatically reduce risk if there was an attack. So we sprang into action.
I recall standing on desks and directing our teams to politely finish their client conversations, gather their personal belongings, and leave for the day. With the help of my dedicated leadership team, we got our folks on the road in record time. Emptying a massive building and parking structures under extreme time pressure is no mean feat. Local law enforcement was a massive help to coordinate the quick exodus.
In the days following the attacks, my mortgage and home equity teammates all wanted to fight terrorism with our banking superpowers. We were inspired by Todd Beamer and the Flight 93 passengers for their unthinkably selfless act of giving up their lives to protect our country. This was the hijacked plane that was on its way to destroy targets in our nation's capital. Thank goodness the passengers overtook the terrorists and forced the plane to crash. The fearless Americans on Flight 93 were having none of it... and neither were we...
My teammates were devastated and inspired, almost everyone knew someone killed or knew someone who knew someone killed.
For my lending business, our superpower was getting loan proceeds into the hands of our customers and supporting our financial system. We had $Billions of high credit quality loans in our pipeline and new apps were still flowing. We were OPEN FOR BUSINESS. We believed supporting liquidity at the customer level was essential. While the Fed almost instantly implemented low rates to provide liquidity, the financial system still had to operate to get cash into the hands of people. This is where my lending organization has a "particular set of skills" that helped us fight the terrorist's intentions. Our skills enabled us to provide American’s the confidence our banking system is STRONG and RESILIENT.
The crux challenge was a last-mile problem. With Fed Ex and UPS planes grounded, the only way to do this was by individual loan package driving and delivery. Our teammates arranged client meetings at notaries to complete the closing and fund the loans. This was in the days before e-closings and e-notaries. Mortgage closings were still very much place-based. Our biggest state was California, we were based in North Carolina. It was a grueling month but rarely did my teammates complain. Our customers were thrilled and thankful. We shared our raw 9/11 stories and filled their bank accounts. My focused, energized teammates wanted more....our mantra being "no customer left behind."
I was - and still am - so proud of our leaders and teammates. We were part of foiling the terrorist's plans to disrupt the financial system - instead of using guns - we used our operating system, the bank's liquidity, and the incredible energy and creativity of my teammates. It is extraordinary when organizations become so aligned and focused. It reminds me of the great power of our human spirit. It reminds me of overcoming fear, applying our gifts, and doing the right thing.
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate,
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
- Marianne Williamson
And in the aftermath of 9/11....my banking team was powerful beyond measure.
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