ALLEN, Texas — In September 2001, Marcus Kergosien was 32 years old and living in New York City.
On the 11th, he was running late for a 9:00 a.m. meeting.
"That morning, I woke up and was going to a seminar on the 44th floor of the North Tower for the New York Society of Security Analysts," said Kergosien.
He was under the World Trade Center's South Tower at 9:03 a.m.
"I caught a glimpse that there was a fire way up in the North Tower," Kergosien said. "There was a huge explosion overhead, some hundreds of feet up. That's when Flight 175 hit the South Tower, knocked me off my feet. And time kind of slowed down immensely."
He said he was faced down on the sidewalk.
"Somebody just grabbed me by my elbow like it was a ragdoll pulling me to my feet. And it was a firefighter who had 'FDNY' on his helmet. And he just screamed, 'Run for your life.' So I did," said Kergosien.
Kergosien recalls running into a pharmacy on Broadway, where he noticed a stack of disposable cameras. He snapped photos before and after the collapse of the South Tower.
And while he doesn't have a photo of the firefighter who told him to run, Kergosien remembers his face.
"Eugene Whelan," he said. "He's my hero."
"My son was born in July. So three months later, he almost lost his dad at the World Trade Center. And I just wanted to convey to the Whelan family that there was a little boy that still has a daddy because of the sacrifice of their son," said Kergosien.
Many firefighters were never recovered. Empty graves are a haunting thought for Kergosien.
On Sept. 11, 2001, Kergosien instinctively, yet unknowingly, documented history. And he would do it again nearly 22 years later at the Allen Premium Outlets.
May 6, 2023, was the day of the mass shooting at the outlet mall. Now, living in North Texas as the manager of a store called Zwilling, Kergosien locked down with customers inside.
Elio Cumana-Rivas was one of eight victims. He was shot and killed outside of Kergosien's store.
"It is sickening to think about," Kergosien said.
He soon learned that Cumana-Rivas was from Venezuela, and his family was struggling to fly his remains home. In the months after the shooting, Kergosien made it his mission to share Cumana-Rivas's story and push for help.
Kergosien said, "It was particularly important for me to have the remains of Elio Cumana-Rivas returned to Venezuela. And it did take three months, but it eventually happened. Only then could his family get proper closure. The Whelan family never got that."
He made sure Cumana-Rivas's grave did not sit empty. The events were two states and twenty-two years apart. These tragedies, while unparallel, line up for Kergosien.