Changed by 9/11: Dave Ruedeman and Mary Ahern, Parents

Dave Ruedeman of had only been working at Viacom for six months when 9/11 hit. In the days following the attacks, his company gave up a large chunk of their downtown office building to response personnel, and moved the majority of workers to another office in Midtown.

Everyone else was laid off within two months. 

"I had a generous severance package," he said. "If I had to be laid off from somewhere, that was the best place."

Even so, he and his wife, Mary Ahern, struggled to keep their two children in college while juggling a large mortgage and medical insurance payments. Ruedeman found another job a year and a half later though he was forced to accept a 30 percent pay cut. 

To bridge the gap between the end of his severance and his new job, he and his wife took out a home equity line of credit which they are still paying off today.

“It’s the gift that keeps on giving. We’re here now, 10 years later, and we won’t be paying off that home equity line for another 15 years,” said Ahern.