As is the case for many employees, for Sean O., this year’s Memorial Ceremony served as yet another reminder of why he comes to work every day. Sean, a member of the Directorate of Support, said that two events in fall of 2001 changed his life forever.

“On September 11, I was working for a PR & Marketing company, and was in the midst of a worldwide launch of a multi-million dollar Web-enabling solution when the disasters struck. I can still remember the shock I felt watching the events unfold on 20+ TVs in our lobby,” Sean said.

Two months later, Mike Spann was killed in Afghanistan during an uprising of Taliban prisoners. “The footage and photographs of the funeral poignantly displayed the grief of his wife and their children and made me realize that I could not remain on the periphery as these horrible events unfolded,” Sean said. “These images are etched into my memory.”

When he gives tours to visitors, Sean said that he always begins at the Memorial Wall in the Original Headquarters Building lobby.

“It highlights the history of heroism by CIA Officers and in particular the impact that Mike Spann’s death had on me,” he said. “His sacrifice is what brought me to the CIA. There is no mission more important than protecting the citizens of America, and I am forever indebted to those that have made the ultimate sacrifice for all of us.”

On June 2, Sean joined hundreds of Agency officers who remembered their fallen colleagues during a ceremony in front of the Memorial Wall. Family and friends of more than 30 of the fallen employees also attended the ceremony.