BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. — The 20 years after the 9/11 attacks have meant a fight for justice for a Boynton Beach family.
They lost a loved one in the World Trade Center towers, which still brings pain for them to this day.
On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, a work meeting brought Joseph Holland III to the 92nd floor of the North Tower at the World Trade Center.
"The entire world watched our family member be murdered," Joseph's brother, Brian Holland, said.
At first, Joseph Holland II said he wasn't sure if his son was in the building.
"I eventually got through to my daughter-in-law," he recalled. "She says to me, 'You know he's not there. He's in the commodities building.' I said, 'Yeah, I know.' Then she says, 'He had a meeting in the World Trade Center,' and then I knew."
The elder Holland, a retired New York City firefighter, said he later learned his son was alive until the tower collapsed.
"They found his keys and they found remains. I consider myself lucky that they found that so soon," Holland Jr. said.
Just days earlier on Sept. 1, 2001, the 32-year-old commodities trader and his wife welcomed their son into the world.
"The phone call when he called to say his son was born, I remember that," Brian Holland, who was just 10 at the time recalled. "I like to think about him and the days he had with his son and his wife."
"He loved that kid for those 10 days, I mean from day one, I think he would have been a terrific father," Holland Jr. said. "He was a terrific father for those 10 days."
Now 20 years later, the Holland family waits for justice.
The elder Holland recalled a past visit to Guantanamo Bay where the accused masterminds of 9/11 are still awaiting trial.
"I wanted to see how the trial was going and what these guys looked like and why they killed innocent people," Holland Jr. said.
And while they wait for justice, Joseph's little brother Brian and the rest of the Holland family remember and honor Joseph Holland III.
"He couldn't reap all of his success, so I try to push myself a little more professionally to try to enjoy that for him," Brian Holland said.
"The pain never goes away. It might hit you one day real hard and then it'll die down, but it always comes back," Holland Jr. said.
