Hero in Red

On September 10^th, freshman Neal Surrena walked into the UCF football stadium and saw his idea come to life in a sea of red. The stadium housed thousands of energetic students, all sporting red bandanas. Flashback to a week earlier, and Surrena created an idea for a few of his friends to honor a fallen hero of the tragic 9/11 terrorist attacks by wearing a symbolic red bandana.

 A week before the anticipated game against Boston College, Surrena was watching ESPN when a special came on retelling the story of a hero named Welles R. Crowther. Crowther attended the rival school, Boston College, and always wanted to be a firefighter. He was working in the South Tower when the plane hit and, while covering his mouth with a red bandana, he went back in at least three times to rescue people. Crowther gave his life saving over 12 people in the unforgettable 9/11 attacks. This story of bravery and selflessness inspired Surrena to not only honor Crowther, but also all those who lost their lives in the attacks.
 
What started out as a Facebook event for around 20 of his friends grew dramatically to over 1,000 that very same night. Surrena posted the event on a UCF group when another student, Garrett Weiss, was touched by the story as well and reached out to Surrena and offered help. The two, working together, posted the invite on multiple social media sites, as well as promoted it on the radio and television. It seemed that the story not only touched Surrena and Weiss, but thousands of students.
           
The day of the game was an unforgettable experience for Surrena. In the morning, he put on a shirt with the knights logo surrounded by a red bandana and headed off to do two more interviews. He then met up with his friends and was able to truly see the effect of his idea. Everywhere he looked people were wearing red bandanas, and some were wearing shirts similar to his. And while UCF was rivaled against Boston College, both schools came together to support the idea. It wasn’t about the game, rather the greater picture of Americans.
 
Joe Hornstein, associate director of athletics, arranged for Crowther’s two sisters to be flown out for the game. Throughout the game, Surrena was trying to contact the sister, Paige, but there was no cell reception in the stadium. At the end of the game he received a voicemail from Paige explaining that she was about to leave and she regretted not being able to see him. As a disappointed Surrena was leaving with his friends, a young girl stopped him to look at his poster with Crowther’s picture. When he told her his name, he found out that the woman was Paige. They were able to talk for about 30 minutes and his departing gift to her was the poster. And as it turns out, another girl had stopped him earlier, and neither realizing it, he had stumbled upon the other sister of Crowther.
 
Surrena hopes to make this an annual tradition, sporting red bandanas at a football game. His goal is to spread the word about 9/11, never letting anyone forgot about all the people who lost their lives. He hopes to make shirts and sell them – donating all the money to either the Welles Crowther trust or another 9/11 charity. Surrena explains that on the back of the shirt he would love to place a quote that Crowther’s mom has said, “Be courageous, care for others. A hero lies within.”