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It practically gallops!

Contra-tution

Bacon cheeseburgers are delicious. All restaurants should serve them. In fact, the government should force Indian restaurants and Kosher delicatessens to serve them too. Better still, the government should force Hindu and Jewish business owners to give free bacon cheeseburgers to their employees. Wouldn’t that be great?

Of course that would never happen because the First Amendment protects the religious liberty of Hindus and Jews. They would never be forced to violate their religious beliefs. However the government has ordered all employers to offer types of health insurance that violate Catholic beliefs. Catholic bishops want an exemption for Catholic-owned institutions.

It doesn’t matter whether you believe pork is edible or unclean. You still respect the beliefs of those who disagree. There’s no valid reason for the government to force a Catholic school or hospital provide free contraception to its employees. It could be that the government believes contraception is a good thing that must be forced on those who disagree. Or it could be sinister plot to force Catholics out of the hospital and charity business. Either way, the government is forcing Catholic institutions to disobey the law.

My friend Frank Weathers has created a petition on the White House’s website for those who object to this clear violation of the First Amendment. It’s not about whether or not you believe in contraception. It’s about whether or not you believe in the Constitution.

February 3, 2012 | Filed Under Catholic | 1 Comment 

State Pen

The parallels between the sex abuse scandal at Penn State and the sex abuse scandal in the Catholic church are obvious. As a Catholic, I can understand the shock and disappointment that football fans are feeling. Coach Joe Paterno is similar to a bishop who tried to handle the crisis as an internal matter instead of calling the police.

Sadly, the Penn State scandal is likely to be only the tip of another iceberg. There are probably dozens, if not hundreds, of pedophiles working in sports programs at colleges, high schools and grammar schools. I hope that those who have been victimized are able to find the strength to report their abusers to the police and prevent the criminals from harming another child.

Too many people have incorrectly dismissed sex abuse as a Catholic-only problem. It’s understandable that they would want to believe it couldn’t happen to them. Abuse is a human problem that affects people of all religions, races and nationalities.

November 12, 2011 | Filed Under Catholic | Comments Off 

Brotherhood

At my grandmother’s funeral this summer, we took time to acknowledge the family members who had predeceased her. We prayed for her husband, two of her sons and two of her grandsons. Her late grandsons are my cousins, Terry and Kenny Hatton.

Kenny died of a brain tumor when he was only 16. Terry was almost 18 at the time. I remember that it was Terry who called the extended family members, including my parents, to tell them that his brother had passed away. Kenny was a star athlete for his school’s baseball team. We thought that his physical fitness may have hidden the early effects of his illness. It wasn’t until he inexplicably fell during a ballgame and complained of a headache that his tumor was discovered. By then, it was quite large. He underwent surgery to remove it but never regained consciousness.

When someone dies young, it reminds us of the fragility and the value of our own lives. The death of a close family member may inspire us to do something we had been putting off. At my father’s wake, one of his friends told my mother that they hoped to visit Ireland someday. She told them to stop procrastinating and make the trip because you never know when it will be too late. My father had hoped to get there too but didn’t.

Obviously, Kenny’s death had an effect on Terry. I wish I could ask him about it. Terry joined the volunteer fire department in Rockville Centre the same year his brother died, a fact I was reminded of by a comment in an online guestbook honoring his memory. Their dad, Ken Hatton Sr., was a deputy chief for the New York City Fire Department. Terry went on to join FDNY himself, rising through the ranks to become captain of Rescue 1. Ten years ago today, he was one of New York’s Bravest who marched into the burning twin towers as the civilian survivors tried to get out. 343 firefighters lost their lives  at the World Trade Center on 9/11.

Firefighters call each other “brother.” Tim Brown, one of the last people to see Terry alive heard him say, “I love you, brother. I may never see you again.” Brown will be featured in a Showtime special called “Rebirth” that premieres at 9:00 p.m. tonight and repeats throughout the week.

I heard my cousin’s name on the radio last night. I was flipping between stations when I landed on a talk show host talking about a column by Peggy Noonan. As he started reading aloud from it, I just knew that Terry’s name would somehow come up. Here’s the part I heard:

And there were the firemen. They were the heart of it all, the guys who went up the stairs with 50 to 75 pounds of gear and tools on their back. The other people who were there in the towers, they were innocent victims, they went to work that morning and wound up in the middle of a disaster. But the firemen saw the disaster before they went into it, they knew what they were getting into, they made a decision. And a lot of them were scared, you can see it on their faces on the pictures people took in the stairwells. The firemen would be going up one side of the stairs, and the fleeing workers would be going down on the other, right next to them, and they’d call out, “Good luck, son,” and, “Thank you, boys.”
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They were tough men from Queens and Brooklyn and Staten Island, and they had families, wives and kids, and they went up those stairs. Captain Terry Hatton of Rescue 1 got as high as the 83rd floor. That’s the last time he was seen.

September 11, 2011 | Filed Under Uncategorized | 6 Comments 

9 Years, 11 Months

Australian firefighter Nathan Bentley befriended me on Facebook after discovering that FDNY Captain Terry Hatton was my cousin. He is good about keeping in touch when he thinks about 9/11. Here’s a message he sent me the other day:

I was searching for some FDNY footage on YouTube and found a clip of raw footage from the Naudet brothers from 9/11. I realize this may upset you but if you watch this link, round the 11 minute mark, you will see Terry and Rescue 1 arriving and Terry talking to Battalion Chief Pfeiffer at the desk.

August 11, 2011 | Filed Under Uncategorized | 1 Comment 

Make Every Dollar Count

A well-meaning pastor was on the news last week. He had a truck parked outside a local grocery store and was accepting donations of bottled water and canned food. He was taking the supplies to Alabama for tornado victims. He said he wouldn’t get to the devastated towns but knew of a place about three miles away. On the surface, this seems like a wonderful and generous thing to do. I wish they had given it a little more thought.

If you saw the truck and were moved to contribute, you probably would have gone inside the store and paid retail price for a case of water. Let’s suppose you took that same $5 or $10 and gave it to the American Red Cross or The Salvation Army instead. What would they do with it?  For starters, they could buy at least twice as much water at wholesale prices. Or they could let their trained staff decide what to buy with it. On top of that, they have the know-how to get relief supplies exactly where they are needed most, not three miles away.

The thoughtful people who are helping and contributing should not be discouraged. I understand that it makes us feel better to put a case of water on a truck than to write a check or to text “REDCROSS” to 90999. For those who want to donate in-kind, it would make more sense to send gently-used items that you have around the house. Better still, have a garage sale and give the money to charity.

May 4, 2011 | Filed Under Uncategorized | 1 Comment 

Never Forgotten

funeral program for FDNY Captain Terence S. Hatton Terry Hatton died on September 11, 2001. Unlike the innocent murder victims who were already in the World Trade Center when terrorists struck, Terry ran into a burning building in an effort to save others. It was his job. He was captain of FDNY Rescue 1. He was also my first cousin. At the wake, Terry’s father, former FDNY Deputy Chief Ken Hatton, described Terry’s death as a casualty of war.

Each year on the anniversary of the attacks, I try to post something to honor my cousin’s memory. It’s a sobering thought that the next 9/11 will be the tenth anniversary of Terry’s death. The death of Osama Bin Laden (on Divine Mercy Sunday) has prompted me to gather some memories of Terry that others have posted online.

  • Terry was married to Rudy Giuliani’s assistant Beth. During his presidential campaign, Giuliani’s staff posted a section of the book “Leadership” that focused on Terry.
  • A CBS News story on “48 Hours” told of Terry’s last known words as he entered the building. It also tells how Beth discovered she was pregnant shortly after Terry died.
  • Terry was already considered a hero before 9/11.. In 2005, a block of 43rd Street was renamed Captain Terence S. Hatton Way.
  • A camera crew recorded a  few seconds of Terry at a fire in April, 2000. As I recall it was for a syndicated reality show. Someone has posted the footage, probably illegally, on YouTube. While it’s still there, you can see Terry at 24 seconds in.

May 2, 2011 | Filed Under Uncategorized | 8 Comments 

Proud to Serve

Each September 11, I try to post something about my cousin Terry Hatton. He was the captain of FDNY Rescue 1 and lost his life in the line of duty at the World Trade Center. I recently received an email from a firefighter with the Country Fire Authority in Mount Martha, Australia.

Dear Frank,

A very big hello from Australia!.

My name is Nathan Bentley and I am a firefighter from Victoria, Australia.

I came across your blog whilst searching for information about your cousin, Capt. Terry Hatton.

Let me say firstly, thank you very much for sharing your stories and memories of your cousin, it gave me a better insight into what a sensational firefighter/person your cousin was. If more people were like him, the world would be a better place.

Being a firefighter myself, I look up to Terry. I class him as one of my biggest inspirations for being a firefighter, I guess I class him as a “hero”. I know I never got to meet him, however from reading all the stories and memories of him, I feel as a fellow firefighter I can learn a lot from his work ethic and love for the job. I hope one day, that I can become as good a firefighter as Terry.

I recently purchased a memorial bracelet online with Terry’s name on it. I wear it every day with pride :)

Thank you very much for your time.

Kind Regards,

Nathan Bentley

December 11, 2010 | Filed Under Uncategorized | Comments Off 

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