Project 2996: Remembering Vicki C. Yancey

Vicki Costanzo Yancey loved politics; it said so on her Web site. And she loved her family, figure skating, her four cats and making a difference.

Mrs. Yancey, 43, who grew up in New Jersey, was a typical middle-class mother of two, according to her husband, David -- but a mom who testified before the Senate Finance Committee, who once gave CNN's "Quote of the Day" and who was involved in activities from her daughters' schools to national politics.

An electronics technician and Navy veteran who lived in Springfield, Va., she died on Sept. 11 when American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon.

"I think she was the epitome of a middle-class woman who loved her kids, loved politics and loved life," David Yancey said. "She cared for all human beings."

Mrs. Yancey's life took her from New Jersey to Hawaii -- where she met and married her husband -- and to Capitol Hill.

Her Senate appearance, which she called on her Web site "the most interesting thing I have ever done," came in 1991 after she wrote to the Washington Post lamenting the loss of the one-income family.

She was asked to speak at a tax reform hearing about the struggles of the middle-class family. She delivered the CNN "Quote of the Day," led the Headline News, and was profiled by CNN and PBS.

Her quote: "Diving deeply into debt in our middle age is a very unappealing possibility."

"She referred to that as her 15 minutes of fame," her husband said.

She created her own Web site after that, filling it with photos and commentary on her many passions: daughters Michelle, 18, and Carolyn, 15; figure skating, which she loved to watch; travel, and politics.

"She was a good American citizen," said her father, Salvatore Costanzo of Hamilton Township.

Born in Kearny, Mrs. Yancey lived there until age 15, when her family moved to Hillsborough. She graduated from Hillsborough High School in 1974.

At 22, she joined the Navy, becoming an electronics technician. She served for six years, four at Pearl Harbor. She and her husband married in Honolulu, where their first daughter was born.

At the time of her death, Mrs. Yancey worked as a Department of Defense contractor with Vrendenburg Co. in Washington, D.C. She was en route to a conference in Reno, Nev. She was supposed to take an earlier flight but had to switch because of ticketing problems.

"It breaks my heart that she left before any of us got up. We said our goodbyes the night before," her husband said. Their last conversation was before takeoff, when they said "I love you," and he wished her a safe trip.

One thing David Yancey said his wife would not want now is for her death to cause any abuse to Arab-Americans.

"That's not how she lived her life and that's not what she wants," he said.

In addition to her husband, daughters and father, Mrs. Yancey is survived by a sister, Gloria Snekszer of Acworth, Ga.; three brothers, Ronald of Edison, Raymond and Richard, both of North Carolina; and several nieces and nephews.

Memorial services with military honors were held at St. Bernadette's Catholic Church in Springfield.

Profile by Jeanette Rundquist published in THE STAR-LEDGER.

Here are comments left by 2 of Vicki Yancey's online friends:

The 3rd anniversary of that terrible day prompted me to tell my son that I "knew" someone who was murdered. Even though I, like Ms Robbie, only knew Vicki Yancey through our online political debates. I did respect her and enjoyed sparring with her.

Right after 9/11, I heard that a Vicki Yancey had been on Flight 77, but I didn't make the connection until Marsha "Libby" Bette confirmed she had perished. The fact that I 'knew" someone who had been on one of those planes made this horrible tragedy even more poignant and difficult to comprehend.

May God bless and comfort her surviving husband and two daughters, as well as her parents and extended family. May they know that Vicki was a good woman who has been missed and remembered by many -- even those who never actually met her.

*** Posted by Dittophile on 2004-09-12 ***

I knew Vicki online only, on the old TIME Politics bulletin board and subsequent boards. Despite being on the other side of the country from her, Vicki and I had lively conversations, both on the boards and in private e-mail. I thought of her as a friend.

Although I was shocked and saddened by the events of 9/11 the minute I knew about them, I didn't cry until I learned, a few days later, that Vicki had been one of the victims. I still miss her.

*** Posted by Ms Robbie on 2004-01-05 ***

Posted as part of Project 2996, to remember victims of the attacks on September 11, 2001.

I will care when...

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." - Abraham Lincoln

Letter from one 'Angry Woman'.....

"Are we fighting a war on terror or aren't we? Was it or was it not started by Islamic people who brought it to our shores on September 11, 2001?

Were people from all over the world, mostly Americans, not brutally murdered that day, in downtown Manhattan , across the Potomac from our nation's capitol and in a field in Pennsylvania ?

Did nearly three thousand men, women and children die a horrible, burning or crushing death that day, or didn't they?

And I'm supposed to care that a copy of the Koran was 'desecrated' when an overworked American soldier kicked it or got it wet?
Well, I don't. I don't care at all.

I'll start caring when Osama bin Laden turns himself in and repents for incinerating all those innocent people on 9/11.

I'll care about the Koran when the fanatics in the Middle East start caring about the Holy Bible, the mere possession of which is a crime in Saudi Arabia.

I'll care when these thugs tell the world they are sorry for chopping off Nick Berg's head while Berg screamed through his gurgling slashed throat.

I'll care when the cowardly so-called 'insurgents' in Iraq come out and fight like men instead of disrespecting their own religion by hiding in mosques.

I'll care when the mindless zealots who blow themselves up in search of nirvana care about the innocent children within range of their suicide.

I'll care when the American media stops pretending that their First Amendment liberties are somehow derived from international law instead of the United States Constitution's Bill of Rights.

In the meantime, when I hear a story about a brave marine roughing up an Iraqi terrorist to obtain information, know this: I don't care.

When I see a fuzzy photo of a pile of naked Iraqi prisoners who have been humiliated in what amounts to a college-hazing incident, rest assured: I don't care.

When I see a wounded terrorist get shot in the head when he is told not to move because he might be booby-trapped, you can take it to the bank: I don't care.

When I hear that a prisoner, who was issued a Koran and a prayer mat, and fed 'special' food that is paid for by my tax dollars, is complaining that his holy book is being 'mishandled,' you can absolutely believe in your heart of hearts: I don't care.

And oh, by the way, I've noticed that sometimes it's spelled 'Koran' and other times 'Quran.'
Well, Jimmy Crack Corn and-you guessed it - I don't care!!

Should you choose the latter, then please don't complain when more atrocities committed by radical Muslims happen here in our great Country!

And may I add:

"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem'.
-- Ronald Reagan

'If we ever forget that we're One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under'
Also by.. Ronald Reagan

One last thought for the day:

In case we find ourselves starting to believe all the Anti-American sentiment and negativity, we should remember England 's Prime Minister Tony Blair's words during a recent interview. When asked by one of his Parliament members why he believes so much in America , he said: 'A simple way to take measure of a country is to look at how many want in.. And how many want out.'