The Freedom Tower

The Associated Press says that “Navy tradition suggests that the spirit of a ship’s sponsor goes to sea with its crew, and the new USS New Hampshire attack submarine joined the fleet Saturday with its sponsor urging its crews to endure and persevere.

Cheryl McGuinness, whose husband was a co-pilot of one of the airliners that crashed into the World Trade Center, said that as a former Navy wife she understands what’ll be asked of the ship’s crew - and their families - as New Hampshire heads to sea.

“These sailors are standing up for our country, standing up for freedom and standing up for our protection,” she said. Veterans organizations lobbied the Navy to appoint McGuinness, of Portsmouth, N.H., to serve as sponsor for the launch of this new ship. Her husband Tom, a former Navy fighter pilot, was co-pilot of American Airlines Flight 11, which was flown into the World Trade Center North Tower on Sept. 11, 2001.”