Robert Fazio has had to piece together the last moments of his father, Ron, through conversations with those who had seen him in the south tower of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

He was in the Aon Corporation offices on the 99th floor when the plane struck the south tower. Although employees were told to return to work, he urged his coworkers to evacuate instead.

On the way out, his coworkers told the family that Ron Fazio held the door open for people as they descended the stairs to get out of the building.

In what would be his last moments, Ronald C. Fazio Sr. chose kindness.

“His instinct was to put others first, just like he always was, and how he lived his life,” Rob Fazio told me from his New Jersey home days before the anniversary.

The family handed out flyers that described Ron’s height, weight and the scars on his chest and left leg. They asked whoever found him to feed him Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Despite this, the family buried an empty casket in New Jersey the following year.

“While we didn’t find him, we found his inspiration, which really became the cornerstone for everything my family and friends have done for the last 25 years,” Rob Fazio said.

A family mourns – and creates a way to help others

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that killed 2,977 people and impacted millions who watched it unfold. Ron Fazio's story, as told by his son, helped me better understand that day and the grief we have all lived with for two and a half decades.

At the time of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Rob was in a psychology doctoral program at Virginia Commonwealth University. He changed his dissertation topic to focus on the emotional impacts of the day on grieving families.

It ultimately led him and his family to found Hold the Door for Others in his father’s memory the following year, a nonprofit dedicated to fostering growth through feelings of grief. He learned what works through both his studies and experience.

“When it was time to look for my dad, I could buck up and be like ‘Okay, we’re........

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