On September 22nd, 2023 Barbara Raniere traveled from New York to visit South High School and present to a group of students in the Performing Arts Center about her family’s story to honor the 22nd anniversary of 9/11. Barbara was invited to South High by English teacher Mr. Rothkopf to share her story with his public speaking class so they could witness the incredible story in person and take note of the strategies she used to bring the story to life when speaking. “We spent two weeks in my class learning about 9/11 and some of the victims of that day and the 9/11 commission fund. The students then had an assignment where they had to present in front of their classmates.” said Mr. Rothkopf when describing the work his students had done to prepare for Barbara’s visit. “Barbara, her father and her cousin were in the World Trade Center on 9/11, so she came in to talk about her experiences.” Those who attended the presentation not only heard Barbara and her family’s story but also saw personal photographs that she shared. Senior Samuel Organista who attended the presentation described it as, “a really touching story that showed us what happened that day.” All students respected Barbara by carefully listening to what she had to say and waited until the end to ask questions.
