DRACUT, MASS. (WHDH) - Two farms in Dracut will donate a percentage of their profits this weekend to organizations that provide food to those in need in honor of a pilot who was killed during the 9/11 terror attacks.
Pilot John Ogonowski was flying American Airlines Flight 11 when it was hijacked by terrorists and flown into The World Trade Center.
“It’s still a raw, open wound. We just don’t know what to think sometimes–we’re still in shock,” said Caroline Zuk, the pilot’s friend and fellow farmer.
Ogonowski is deeply missed in his hometown of Dracut, where people knew him out of uniform, working the land on his family’s White Gate Farm.
The 50-year-old husband and father had started several organizations to help feed the hungry. He also helped immigrant farmers.
“I think the way to heal from this is to do what his legacy was, which was to try to do good for other people,” said Zuk.
By printing out a coupon online, customers can donate 40 percent of their purchase at Saja Farm to St. Theresa Homeless Ministry. Another coupon can be used to have 50 percent of your cider donut purchase at Farmer Dave’s donated to Dracut’s End Hunger 68 Hours of Hunger.
St. Francis Church, Ogonowski’s parish, will also collect non-perishable food items at the farm stands.
“John knew this–food is kinda the basis of the community,” said David Dumaresq, the pilot’s friend and fellow farmer. “When we sit down for a meal it builds community. When we’re out there in the fields growing the food and we employ 80 people, that supports the community itself.”
(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)