As children born in the year of 9/11 come of age, their parents describe efforts to create a better world
The babies born in the year of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks are turning 18.
They entered the world during one of our nation's darkest chapters, bringing what their parents call "much-needed light."
Of course the children born on or near Sept. 11, 2001 don't remember that fateful, tragic event when terrorists hijacked planes and crashed them into the Twin Towers in New York, part of the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. and a field in Pennsylvania.
Yet they live the consequences.
The only world they've known is a post-9/11 landscape, often laden with fear, mistrust and tight security.
Because of this, many of their parents say they've worked overtime helping children cope and maybe compensate for the cruelty of their predecessors.
Their mothers say their children's arrival brought hope and the reminder that even in the toughest of times, love can prevail. They say the fearful and angry nature of the time underscored their parental responsibility to nurture optimism and hope for a better world.
FOSTERING HOPE PART OF A PARENT'S JOB
Like her peers who also were born in the shadow of Sept. 11, 2001, Michaela Dillon is entering adulthood.
Some, including the 17-year-old Oak Lawn, Ill., resident, are graduating high school. Others are seniors who will graduate next
