Some moments divide life into a before and after. For Terry Strada, that moment came on the morning of September 11, 2001, when her husband, Tom, called her from the North Tower after the first plane struck. In this episode of Zone 7, Sheryl McCollum speaks with Terry about the phone calls, the hours of not knowing, and the reality of raising their three children in the wake of unimaginable loss. Terry shares how she moved from grief to action by becoming the National Chair of 9/11 Families United and pushing for accountability from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for their role in supporting terrorism.
Highlights:
• (0:00) Sheryl welcomes listeners to Zone 7 and introduces guest Terry Strada
• (1:00) Tom leaves for work; three children at home, one just four days old
• (2:45) The phone call from the North Tower: “A plane has hit the building... it’s horrible...”
• (4:45) Realizing the attacks were deliberate
• (6:00) Calls among Cantor Fitzgerald families in the hours of uncertainty
• (7:00) Who Tom was as a husband, father, and leader
• (9:00) How Terry became part of the lawsuit against Saudi Arabia
• (11:30) Evidence trail: funding networks and support teams inside the U.S.
• (15:30) Scotland Yard evidence and what was withheld in the U.S.
• (18:00) The federal ruling that the case may move forward
• (20:00) Saudi influence, LIV Golf, and how it affected 9/11 families• (29:00) Final reflections and closing quote, “Never Forget”
Guest Bio:
Terry Strada became a national voice for 9/11 families after losing her husband, Tom, in the North Tower on September 11, 2001. As National Chair of 9/11 Families United, she has spent more than twenty years advocating for transparency and accountability, working with lawmakers and federal agencies to expose how terrorism is financed and supported.
Enjoying Zone 7? Leave a rating and review. Your feedback helps others find the show and supports our mission to educate, engage, and inspire.
---
Sheryl “Mac” McCollum is an Emmy Award-winning CSI, a writer for CrimeOnline, forensic and crime scene expert for Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, and co-author of the textbook Cold Case: Pathways to Justice. She is the founder and director of the Cold Case Investigative Research Institute, a national collaboration that advances techniques for solving cold cases and assists families and law enforcement with unsolved homicides, missing persons, and kidnappings.
Social Links:
• Email: coldcase2004@gmail.com
• Twitter: @ColdCaseTips
• Facebook: @sheryl.mccollum
• Instagram: @officialzone7podcast
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.