PINE BLUFF, Ark. (KTHV) -- Eleven years later, America remembers 9/11.
Mrs. Jewele Lyons of Pine Bluff recalls the day that changed her life more than a decade ago. Her son, 29-year-old Naval Petty Officer Nehamon Lyons was just assigned to his dream job in the Pentagon.
"And I was very proud of him," Mrs. Lyons said.
He could never tell her details about his assignment.
"But he said, 'I love what I'm doing.' And that was his goal. His goal was to make it to the Pentagon," Mrs. Lyons added.
But on September 11, 2001, her son did not answer his cell phone.
"All that day, I couldn't get an answer," said Mrs. Lyons.
Watching the news that morning, she knew something was wrong.
"It's just a mother's instinct," Mrs. Lyons explained. "Something told me, 'He's gone.'"
American Airlines Flight 77 had been hijacked on the East Coast, and crashed into the headquarters for the U.S. Department of Defense, killing 184 people, plus the five hijackers.
Navy Petty Officer Nehamon Lyons was among the dead.
"And my sister, staying in Mobile where he was going to college, she said she felt it when they came into her office. And told her, 'Have you seen what happened to the Pentagon?' And she said, 'Oh Lord my nephew is dead.' I mean you could just feel it," Mrs. Lyons said.
She continues to receive support from her family, community, and even the government right after the tragedy. Including a phone call from the former President of the United States George W. Bush.
"He just said it was a sad day -- what else could he say other than 'i'm just so sorry, Mrs. Lyons, for your loss'? I mean there was really nothing anyone could do."
She recalls the last time she spoke to her son, just weeks before the terrorist attack.
"He said, 'I'm going to come home for Thanksgiving.' He said, 'We're going to go shopping. We're going to have fun.' That -- that was the last time."
But the pain lingers on.
"It never goes away. It never goes away. Because it's in your heart," said Mrs. Lyons.
She finds the strength to go on because that's what her son would have wanted her to do.
Surrounded by his medals and pictures, Mrs. Lyons prays for all of the families of 9/11 victims everyday.
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We have a photo gallery of photos of people in New York City honoring the 11th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.
You can find out more about the anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. There you can find pictures from that day, see featured coverage, hear stories of people who were there that day, and see the front pages of all of the newspapers across the country from September 11 and 12.