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CNN Saturday Morning News
Giuliani Invites Hundreds of Oregon Residents to Visit New York
Aired October 06, 2001 - 09:38 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: West meets East as hundreds of Oregon residents accept Mayor Rudy Giuliani's invitation to come to New York, see the sights, visit Broadway, and help the city get back to normal. On the heels of those words, a delegation of 800 people from across the state of Oregon booked a four-day trip to the Big Apple and dubbed the event Flight for Freedom.
Two members of that group, Bill and Julie Chambers, were on that flight. They join us now in studio. Good morning.
BILL CHAMBERS: Good morning.
JULIE CHAMBERS: Good morning.
PHILLIPS: So you guys having a good time?
BILL CHAMBERS: We're having a wonderful time, we're at...
PHILLIPS: What did you do so far since you came here?
BILL CHAMBERS: So far I've gone to one show, I visited "The Music Man," we went to -- took a tour of the island, boat tour. We've been in, I think, every cab in Manhattan.
PHILLIPS: Like how fast they drive?
BILL CHAMBERS: They zip right along, they get you there. The cab fares, I think, are a lot less than they are in Portland, I'll tell you.
PHILLIPS: Yes, it's a pretty good deal.
BILL CHAMBERS: It really is.
PHILLIPS: Well, Julie, why did you and your dad decide to do this? Why bring the family here?
JULIE CHAMBERS: Well, there's really no question about it, we -- I've been wanting to move here for the last year, and last month I took a visit and fell in love with it all over again. And since what happened on the 11th, we were uncertain of my plans to move. And when we heard about the Flight for Freedom, there was no just no question I was coming back, check out the city, and it's alive and strong, and the great New York that I saw a month ago, so...
PHILLIPS: And I see your buttons, "Oregon Loves New York." How have people been responding to your buttons as you're walking down the street or hopping in a cab?
BILL CHAMBERS: Those buttons have been like magic. They've just been almost like a magnet. People would visit, come up to us out of the blue and say, We're so glad you're here. Thank you for coming.
Yesterday, when another contingent came into the hotel, they had the staff lined the stairway, as the people would come through the turnstiles, we got great, big applause. It's been...
PHILLIPS: Wow.
BILL CHAMBERS: ... an absolute marvelous response. It's just been wonderful. The people of New York have really said thanks for coming.
PHILLIPS: Has there been a message with your mission? What do you tell these folks? Obviously a lot of people have poured their hearts out to you and told you probably how difficult it's been. What do you say to them?
JULIE CHAMBERS: We're here to help, and we're a strong country, and there's a lot of people that want to support it, and we're here to just show our support, and get back on our feet.
PHILLIPS: Absolutely. What else have you found here that you cannot find in Oregon, shall I say?
JULIE CHAMBERS: Well, the excitement of the city is what's drawn me from the beginning. It's always something to do. Every place that I've gone to tops the last. And the food, phenomenal. And the shows, of course, are the shows.
PHILLIPS: Yes, I'm sure Dad'll be talking about "The Music Man" for a while, right?
JULIE CHAMBERS: Yes.
PHILLIPS: So Bill, when you guys were flying in, and I noticed this too when I was flying in, they do mention, Well, if you look out the window, you can actually see the area as we're flying in.
BILL CHAMBERS: Right.
PHILLIPS: When you first saw that, what kind of feelings did you have? What was going through your mind when you actually saw the site?
BILL CHAMBERS: Well, it was just awful. I've been in New York several times over the last several years, and having watched it unfold on television on September 11, and then seeing it as we came in, it's just been devastating, the horror of it all, you know. I've -- I can't tell you the number of times that I've just imagined, what really happened on those flights? What really -- and particularly on the one that crashed in Pennsylvania. I thought, those people had to be absolutely heroes, just to decide, We're not -- maybe we're done, but nobody else is going to be done. We're...
PHILLIPS: And from your -- you make such a good point, from your generation, I mean, this is probably something that's pretty been astounding. You've probably witnessed a lot more things with regard to events in history than your daughter. What has this made you realize just about freedom and democracy and the world that you're going to be growing up in and having children and raising a family?
JULIE CHAMBERS: Well, it's definitely shocked me, of course, and the hugest thing I've ever seen, and hopefully will ever see. But I feel very proud to live where I do, and I feel very proud to be an American, and do whatever it takes to fight for my freedom and the freedom of all Americans. It's -- and it...
(CROSSTALK)
BILL CHAMBERS: ... real wakeup call, I truly do. I think that we've had an awfully good life for the last several years, and to a certain extent, I think that we've -- some of us have taken advantage of that. And I think that this has been a wakeup call that that good life has a price, and all of a sudden, the people are saying, I'm prepared to pay that price.
PHILLIPS: Bill and Julie Chambers, thank you so much.
JULIE CHAMBERS: Thank you for having us.
PHILLIPS: I hope you guys have a great weekend as you wrap it up...
JULIE CHAMBERS: Thank you very much.
PHILLIPS: ... and you and the family go out and -- we'll give you a tour of CNN, OK, just to add to the excitement, all right?
JULIE CHAMBERS: Thank you very much.
PHILLIPS: OK, good.
BILL CHAMBERS: Thank you very much.
PHILLIPS: You bet. Thanks again. We salute you and your trip.
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