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Friends honor memory of Mark Bingham, who helped fight terrorists on 9/11
Two former Cal rugby players share remembrances of Mark Bingham of Los Gatos, who was among the passengers on Flight 93 who fought back against terrorists on 9/11.
Oakland - On the 25th anniversary of 9/11, two former Cal rugby teammates of Mark Bingham shared remembrances Friday of the man who helped fight back against terrorists aboard Flight 93.
"I think about Mark. I'm fiercely proud that, you know, that he acted," said Ray Lehner, who was on the rugby team at UC Berkeley with Bingham in the 1990s.
Bingham was among the passengers who stormed the cockpit of United Airlines Flight 93, saving countless lives by sacrificing their own.
Authorities believe the 9/11 hijackers were planning to fly the jet into the U.S. Capitol. The plane had left New Jersey, bound for San Francisco. The Boeing 757 crashed in a field in Pennsylvania.
"I'm not surprised how Mark responded," Lehner said. "I think about it, you know, certainly on this day."
High school teacher recalls championship
What they're saying:
Lehner shared a photo of the two of them in 1991.
"He's taping my ears before the Pacific Coast Championship," said Lehner, a social studies teacher and football and rugby coach at Bishop O'Dowd High School in Oakland.
He said Bingham's legacy is one of selflessness.
"Whenever I get on a plane, I always think about it," Lehner said.
"There were guys up there with knives, and a bunch of people, ordinary people, got up and charged up the aisle," he said.
He says his friend died a hero.
"I wouldn't say an unlikely hero, but he was a pretty chill guy, like he liked to goof around and love of laughter and banter and fun," Lehner said.
Just weeks before he died, Bingham, who was gay, wrote an e-mail to San Francisco Fog, the first gay and inclusive rugby club on the West Coast that he had recently joined.
He wrote, in part, "We have the chance to be role models for other gay folks who wanted to play sports, but never felt good enough or strong enough."
Prosecutor shares memories
What they're saying:
Another former Cal rugby player, Alameda County Assistant District Attorney Mas Morimoto said, "I don't think he was deterred by the fact that, you know, it could be - and unfortunately was - the last thing he did."
Morimoto had on a shirt he wears every Sept. 11, when he says a prayer for Bingham."
His voice breaking, Morimoto said, "So if I got to see him, if our paths cross again one day, I would tell him that I'm with him, and I've always been with him."
Henry Lee is a KTVU reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on X @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan
The Source: The information for this story was gathered from interviews with those who knew Mark Bingham a former UC Berkeley rugby player who acted heroically on United Flight 93, during the 9/11 terrorist attacks.