25 Years After 9/11: How a Sperry, Oklahoma Navy Sailor's Family Keeps His Name Alive

When people picture September 11, 2001, they usually picture Manhattan. But there’s an Oklahoma name tied to the Pentagon that day, and it’s worth knowing. Navy sailor Brian Moss grew up in Sperry, just north of Tulsa, joined the Navy in 1990, and had been working at the Pentagon for only about a month when American Airlines flight 77 struck the building. His widow, Mary Lou Moss, got the news that evening from his commanding officer and a chaplain.

Twenty-five years later, the family hasn’t let the name go quiet. Since 2002, they’ve awarded the Brian Anthony Moss Patriotic Scholarship to Tulsa-area students. Every year, they also host a golf tournament in his honor, and this Saturday it tees off at 8 a.m. at Page Belcher Golf Course in Tulsa. Perhaps the most striking tribute came at his son’s wedding in Jamaica, where the family set aside a chair for Brian. It held his Purple Heart.

There’s also this: his niece later joined the Navy, following the same path he walked. For a sailor who served just over a month at the Pentagon before his death, that’s a remarkable reach, a family that kept showing up for him, and a new generation that chose to serve anyway. Do you have a family member or friend who serves, or who served, and how do you keep their story alive at home?