19 years later, Christ Church pastor and couple meet for first time to reflect on 9/11

Oak Brook, Illinois - It was a meeting nearly 20 years in the making.

A couple and a pastor who had never met came together for the first time on the afternoon of Sept. 29, 2020, in the Garden Plaza of Christ Church Oak Brook. The 19th anniversary of 9/11 had just passed but prior to it, the three had arranged this special meeting to reconnect-though they had never met before.

Their connection began after Jackie Spencer saw a picture in the Sept. 13, 2001, Chicago Tribune of the Rev. Dr. Daniel Meyer, lead pastor at Christ Church Oak Brook, who was photographed in deep thought and prayer at a memorial service honoring the 9/11 victims.

She further immortalized this moment of vulnerability in a similar sketch of Pastor Meyer for a high school art project as a 17-year-old aspiring graphic artist.

The tribute project would be sealed away in an art folder for 19 years until an innocuous playtime moment with Jackie's 4-year-old son ignited a thoughtful remembrance, which her husband, Mike Spencer, would describe in an email to Christ Church months before the eventual meeting.

On the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, in conjunction with the Village of Oak Brook, Christ Church will participate in a Candlelight Service remembering 9/11 at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 10, at the Village of Oak Brook Polo Soccer Field.

Mike Spencer wrote that he could not see the caption in the original newspaper and did not know who the pastor was in the image.

"I have saved these pictures in my favorites, as I'm proud of my bride's skills and I enjoy showcasing what she created when she was pretty young," he wrote. "Earlier today Jackie mentioned she was playing with our four-year-old son and was using the same pencils that she used for this drawing. She commented 'wouldn't it be neat to find the pastor in the picture?'"

So the Spencers subscribed to the Chicago Tribune and requested from their archives a copy of the original Sept. 13, 2001 newspaper and were "pleasantly surprised" to see Pastor Meyer resided not far from their hometown.

"I know this is a unique time with distancing and attempting to connect with people, but I figured Rev. Meyer might think this is a neat message to receive and beyond that perhaps there's an opportunity for my wife to meet the man she drew almost twenty years ago," Spencer wrote.

Touched by the thought of coming together to reflect on that day and how life has changed for so many as result, Meyer requested a meeting be scheduled with these strangers who had connected with him through a mournful picture as our nation and world struggled to cope with the reality of the lives lost in the 9/11 attacks.

"You guys are amazing that you even thought to do this," Meyer said as the gathering began.

Initially all wore face masks then removed them once socially distanced, and after a casual conversation about life, family, friendships, bosses, good and bad, each began to remark on the indelible moments left on them from the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and how what was unfolding at the time became an unimaginable tragedy.

"I was in my office going through email when my phone rings and it's my wife," Meyer began. "'Have you seen the news? The World Trade Towers were attacked,' she said. I grew up in New York and had been up those towers multiple times. I went to the TV in our Fellowship Hall and found a dozen staff members watching images of smoke coming out of the towers. I said, 'Let's go in the Sanctuary and pray for our country.' One of my staff partners said: 'I think Jeff Mladenik was on that plane!'"

Mladenik was an associate pastor at Christ Church Oak Brook and was killed when American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center. His profile was published in The New York Times on January 20, 2002.

"Before we finished, people started streaming in off the street and joined in this prayer time," Meyer said. "We began to think of what people might need during this time. Parents would need resources for their kids. People would need a safe place to process what they were feeling. The media would want to know more about Jeff. We began to organize this response. Two days later, we held a community-wide memorial service and that photo Jackie saw in the newspaper was taken in our packed sanctuary. It looked like a private moment but I was feeling the weight of it all and knew I was not alone," he recalled.

"It touches us all in different ways," said Mr. Spencer.

"Not a lot of good can come from it but there is a connection that comes from people pulling together after bad things," Mrs. Spencer added.

Near the conclusion of their meeting, the Spencers uncovered the now 20-year-old art and surprised Pastor Meyer, saying, "We would actually like for you to have it," Mrs. Spencer said.

Meyer said he would proudly display the art and original newspaper in his office as a tribute to the friendships made out of something so tragic.

"Evil and suffering are an unavoidable part of life, but we always have a choice about what we do with it," Meyer said. "We can choose to create in the face of destruction and to reach out for community instead of grieving alone. Jackie did both of those good things-with her art project and with her decision to contact me. I'll always remember that."

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About Christ Church: Founded in 1965, Christ Church is a multisite, nondenominational church in the Chicago suburbs with more than 6,000 members. Christ Church features a variety of inspiring worship options including classic, classic communion and contemporary services. All people are offered the opportunity to build life-changing relationships with God and one another with a rich range of spiritual growth resources, and a selection of service ministries aimed at creating positive change in the world. Weekend services are held at the Oak Brook and Butterfield locations, as well as via livestream at ChristChurch.us/online. For more information, visit ChristChurch.us.