Pete Hegseth’s Fox News Special Spotlights 9/11 Charity Tunnel to Towers Ahead of 20th Anniversary

A well-known 9/11 charity is expanding its efforts ahead of the upcoming 20th anniversary of the attacks, and their work with Gold Star families and wounded veterans returning home is getting extra attention this Memorial Day weekend.

The Tunnel to Towers charity will be profiled Saturday night at 8 p.m. on Fox News, in an hourlong special hosted by Pete Hegseth. Tunnel to Towers was founded in 2002 to honor the memory of Stephen Siller — an FDNY fireman who raced through the shuttered Battery Tunnel on foot, carrying 60 lbs. of gear, to help save others in the Twin Towers.

Tunnel to Towers is known for an annual 5k race it holds through Brooklyn and Manhattan — to pay tribute to the route Siller took to get to the World Trade Center. The proceeds from that race and the group’s other fundraising initiatives have gone to a variety of causes over the years — including the providing of aid for families of fallen first responders, and the creation of a mobile 9/11 Memorial which travels the country.

Now, the organization is expanding its reach — providing mortgage-free homes for Gold Star families, and building custom-designed smart homes for wounded veterans. Hegseth got an opportunity to tour one of the smart homes, and marveled at the design features that allowed a wheelchair-bound serviceman who lost his legs and his eyesight to carry out day-to-day household tasks without assistance.

“Seeing that smart home was amazing,” Hegseth told Mediaite Friday. “And seeing that the fundamental way in which it altered the life of an American hero who went and served in Afghanistan, came back because of health issues there, lost his legs and his eyesight, and couldn’t live independently. But because of this home — fully tailored to him — he’s able to live and flourish on his own.”

All told, the group is giving away 20 mortgage-free homes to 20 Gold Star families as part of this weekend’s special. Mediaite caught up with Hegseth for a quick preview of the broadcast, and other Tunnel to Towers initiatives on top:

Mediaite: For those not familiar, tell us briefly about Tunnel to Towers, and about the legacy of Stephen Siller, and how this charity has really blossomed from its roots as a mostly 9/11-related fund, to an organization that is now helping out Gold Star families and others.

Pete Hegseth: Tunnel to Towers is a fantastic organization because it is grounded in the legacy of Stephen Siller and all those who gave everything on 9/11. It never forgets. It is tenacious in staying committed to that mission. Last year they read the names when the 9/11 Memorial would not. They are true to the baseline of their mission, and they’re showing it even more so on the 20th anniversary that we never forget what happened there. They’ve remained committed to supporting the families of those who lost loved ones on 9/11 and ongoing. They’ve spread it out to law enforcement, police officers who were killed in the line of duty, military who were injured in the line of duty.

The great thing about Tunnel to Towers is the heart of it — Frank and his other staff members and volunteer members and their love for people who serve in any capacity. And it started with the immense sacrifice on 9/11, but it’s expanded so earnestly to all other forms of service which are so fundamental to our country.

You got a chance to tour one of the smart homes for an injured service member which Tunnel to Towers helped build. Just how important for day-to-day life are these custom-built homes for injured service members, and what are some of the key, unique features?

Pete Hegseth: Seeing that smart home was amazing and seeing that the fundamental way in which it altered the life of an American hero who went and served in Afghanistan, came back because of health issues there, lost his legs and his eyesight, and couldn’t live independently. But because of this home — fully tailored to him — he’s able to live and flourish on his own.

And the amazing part of that story is that he was a he was a firefighter as well. He was a volunteer for Tunnel to Towers before he lost his legs and did the tower climb to simulate what those firefighters did on 9/11. Then he had very unfortunate service-related injuries and had his legs amputated and lost his eyesight and then became a recipient of Tunnel to Towers. It’s a full circle, a loop. And they do that for so many other men and women too. It changes lives. It absolutely changes lives. And to a man, they talk about the personal nature of what Tunnel to Towers does, following through on their lives, not just building a home and see you later. Or mortgage free homes for families, which they did for a couple of the detectives, Ramos and Lou, who were ambushed and killed in the NYPD. The widows we spoke to said this organization didn’t just pay off our mortgage and go away. They’ve become family and they’ve been a resource for us and they’ve helped us heal. That’s part of what’s so cool about Tunnel to Towers.

We’re coming up on the 20th anniversary of 9/11. Does Tunnel to Towers have any special initiatives planned to mark the anniversary? And what else do they have on the horizon — considering how much they’ve grown in recent years?

What they have on the horizon is to do more, to go bigger. You know, they’ve done 24 homes in 24 days. They said, ‘Pete, the list is long and the need is great.’ And that’s why we’re putting our foot on the accelerator, especially in light of the 20th anniversary, to deliver for as many as possible so that their sacrifice is never forgotten, so that someone who puts on a badge or someone who puts on a fire suit or someone who puts on camouflage knows that if they’re if they’re killed or injured in the line of duty, there’s an organization there that’s going to come behind their family and make sure that service is recognized, honored, and never forgotten.

So they are just going bigger, but not bigger for their own sake. Bigger because the need is there. The love of the American people is there to support it. And they’ve got a charity dedicated and prepared for it. I’m so honored to be a part of the network’s Tunnel to Towers special and their ongoing efforts to truly honor that which deserves to be honored in a culture that often holds up vapid things that have no connection to real meaning. Tunnel to Towers does the opposite and I am proud of them.