RSS 2.0 FeedSeptember 8, 2011, Merrick Life
Reporting from the heart: 9/11 legacy – A letter to Pop Pop
Frankie DeVito's letter to his Pop Pop is published by 9/11 group.
Bill Steckman holds his grandson, Frankie.
It’s amazing how social networking has changed our lives and in some cases has given us the opportunity to learn things about our friends that we wouldn’t normally know. To me, this is one such case, in which I got to know Diana DeVito (of North Merrick) a few years ago, as she is a neighbor of one of my close friends and like all such relationships, we became “friends” on Facebook. It is there that I discovered Diana’s dad, William (Bill) Steckman, 56, was killed in the terror attacks on September 11, 2001.
Bill Steckman was a transmitter engineer for NBC-TV. He always worked out of the station’s World Trade Center location and, as many stories have come to be told, he should have been home by the time of the event. He had worked for NBC since 1967, and was on the 104th floor of the North Tower, just below the needle.
He left behind his high-school sweetheart wife, Barbara, daughters Donna, Deanine, Debbie, Diana and son Billy – as well as numerous memories as a husband, father and grandparent.
The family was always close, his wife Barbara said. “It wasn’t like we became closer, we were always that way.”
Bill learned his trade of electronics in the Coast Guard. After his discharge he taught himself more in the field and was always bringing equipment home, fixing things. The neighbors thought perhaps “Bill was a spy with all the wires and dishes we had coming out of the house,” Barbara said.
His daughters joined in to reflect about their dad’s electronic skills, while they were growing up in the ’70s and ’80s. He had installed a camera and intercom outside the front door, viewable from his basement work room he could talk to people who visited. Bill had created what nowadays would be considered an early version of Skype.
With a radio, a camera and some other goodies, he was able to transport an audiovisual image to another location. His “friend” (usually another electronics buff in another country) on the receiving end was able to connect back by using special call letters unique to Bill’s location. “Genius,” his daughters and wife agreed, smiling and telling stories about his love of electronics.
On the 10th anniversary of this horrific event, I sat down with Diana, her mom and sisters, and listened to the story about their husband and father. Also present was Diana’s son, Frankie, who is entering 10th grade at Calhoun High School and plays football for the junior varsity Colts. Frankie’s feeling of loss, as for the rest of the family, was great. He spent every day with his grandparents, and at the time of his grandfather Bill’s death, was just beginning kindergarten at Fayette School.
The family became involved with many support groups after the 9/11 tragedy. One particular group, Tuesday’s Children, is a big part of their life. The group recently published a book called “The Legacy Letters, Messages of Life and Hope from 9/11 Family Members,” which features a letter Frankie wrote (present day) to his grandfather, who meant so much to him.
Tuesday’s Children describes the book as “a compilation of 100 letters written to those who were lost. The book shares stories of resilience that honor the memory of each person through the full lives their family members are leading today.”
Both Diana and Frankie wrote submissions for the book, and choosing one per family, Frankie’s appears along with a photo of him and his grandfather.
Here is an excerpt of Frankie DeVito’s letter in “The Legacy Letters”:
Dear Pop Pop,
I was five years old on 9/11, too young to understand what really happened. When I found out you had passed away, I was devastated. You were my favorite person and I would never be able to see you again…
You always taught me to live life to the fullest and enjoy everything that I can. I’ll never forget when you promised to take me to your work in the Twin Towers. I loved tugboats and you wanted to take me there when the tugboats passed by. Now, every year when this tragic day comes around, I relive the good times we had together that I will remember for the rest of my life.
Forever missing you,
Frankie
Diana’s words
Not in the book are Diana’s words about her father. She wrote about how her dad found a starfish on the beach one day while out boating with his grandkids. She looked up “starfish” on the computer and came up with a great story to pass along.
“The story is about a man walking along a beach where there were hundreds of starfish that were going to die because they were not in the water. He began picking up the starfish and throwing them back in the water. A stranger yells out, “It won’t make a difference, you can’t save them all.” But the man continued throwing the fish back in, saying “I made a difference to that one” each time.
Diana continues, “My dad certainly made a difference in my life and I have to believe he helped people get out of the building that day, and did make a difference.”
Bill’s Family: From left are Donna, Deanine, wife Barbara, Diana and grandson Frankie Devito.
