A Wonderful Cousin, Lost on 9/11, Remembered

Resident Kathy Belina shares memories of her cousin, Vanessa Kolpak, who died when the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center collapsed. See the New York Times "Portraits" profile on Vanessa.

By Kathy Belina

Every death is difficult to cope with, but when the death is by the hands of an evil soul that caused the death of innocent, wonderful people on a heartless act on Sept. 11, 2001, it is even harder to deal with the tragic death.

On that day, Vanessa Kolpak was one of those wonderful, innocent people that died that horrible day. Vanessa was only 21 years old. She lived in Lincolnwood, IL. She had a father (my uncle and godfather, Paul), mother, sister and brother. She attended Georgetown University and graduated magna cum laude with a major in economics and minors in philosophy and theatre.

In mid-August, she landed a job out of 500 applicants for a brokerage firm on the 89th floor of the South Tower of the World Trade Center, as a financial researcher.     

Vanessa was my cousin, and my flower girl at the age of 6.  She was so special: beautiful, brilliant, poised, funny, caring, confident, and a great, spirited woman. Her smile would light up a room! She never had anything negative to say about anyone. She would have made a big impact in the world. 

The last memory I have of Vanessa is the day of her graduation party from college. She was with family, laughing and dancing. She was so excited to start her new job. I am so grateful that I was able to be there to share in that special day. One memory I will remember is when we hugged and our necklaces were tangled, and she said, “See, we’ll always be bonded forever, cousin.”

Ten years later, we still mourn the loss of Vanessa. It is still very painful to deal with her loss. It’s even more painful because we never found her, to bring her home to rest in peace. I cherish the days she was in my life and that beautiful, beautiful smile. I am grateful that bin Laden is finally gone. I can’t say that I’m celebrating that he’s gone because it doesn’t bring her back to us, but more relieved that he is no more.

To all the families and friends that lost someone special that day, my heart goes out to you. We will never forget that terrible day and all the innocent people that suffered and died from a person that was truly evil to the American people. To all the military families and for the men and woman who served, serving and died for this nation, I thank you for your sacrifice. This nation would not be the same without your courage, dedication, and honorable services. Whether you support the war, or are against the war, we are all Americans and should stand behind our troops. 

Lastly, I like to thank my cousin Vanessa for being in my life; you made my life better because you were in it. I think about you and miss you every day. I live my life every day to the fullest and know your spirit will shine and bond in my heart forever.

If you have a United States flag, please fly it on Sept. 11 and honor all those who have died on this tenth anniversary.