Help Keep The Story Alive.
Thousands of families are still carrying the emotional and financial weight of September 11. The Johnson-Brower Foundation exists to help guide remembrance, education, and support so future generations never forget what these families sacrificed.
Since 2017, Jesse and Tara have personally carried more than 90% of the foundation’s overhead. Your support keeps the mission moving.
The right guide matters
when the mission is this important.
Jesse Johnson-Brower was part of the original small group of military responders deployed to the Pentagon on September 11. That experience gives the foundation something most organizations can never claim: firsthand understanding of the day that changed America.
That matters because remembrance requires credibility. Jesse and Tara are not trying to become the center of the story. Their role is to help guide people back to the families, sacrifices, and truths that should never be forgotten.
Jesse does not share most of his military life publicly. He keeps much of it reserved for those closest to him. But September 11 was a public national tragedy, and he believes the truth belongs to future generations.
Since 2017, Jesse and Tara have carried the weight personally.
Since 2017, Jesse and Tara Johnson-Brower have personally carried more than 90% of the overhead required to serve through the foundation. They did it because the mission mattered before it was funded.
But a mission like this should not depend on one family quietly absorbing the cost. Every monthly commitment, annual remembrance gift, and campaign contribution helps preserve 9/11 education, support families, and keep the promise to never forget.
Your support is not symbolic. It keeps the work moving.
They understand the weight,
so they can guide others through it.
Jesse and Tara Johnson-Brower have experienced both financial pressure and financial success, uncertainty and momentum, exhaustion and rebuilding. Their mission is credible because it comes from lived service, lived sacrifice, and years of carrying the unseen cost of post-traumatic stress together.
That is why families trust them. Jesse and Tara do not place themselves at the center of the mission. Their role is to quietly guide support, preserve truth, and help people remember the families who still carry the burden.
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Jesse was part of the original small group of military responders deployed to the Pentagon on September 11. He spent weeks at the site helping remove the remains of all 184 victims and Flight 77 wreckage. That is the foundation of this mission: firsthand service, not secondhand branding.
Jesse intentionally keeps most of his military background and personal experiences reserved for those inside his inner circle. He does not use private pain, military experience, or tragedy to gain from other people’s loss. That restraint is part of why the public pieces he does share matter.
The reason he speaks publicly about September 11 is because it was a national tragedy witnessed by the world. He believes the truth should be preserved, the sacrifice should be remembered, and future generations should understand what was lost that day.
Jesse’s intensity, sleeplessness, and refusal to compromise integrity have also cost him major partnerships, opportunities, and financial upside over the years. Tara has remained beside him through every season — helping steady the mission, protect the family, and quietly carry weight most people never see.
Together, they built the foundation because they understand that some wounds never fully disappear. The mission is not about attention. It is about making sure the people and sacrifices connected to September 11 are never forgotten.
Education. Remembrance.
Family support.
The Johnson-Brower Foundation exists to preserve the legacy of September 11, educate future generations, and support families still carrying the cost of service. The mission is led by an original responder who was there, not by people borrowing the memory from a distance.
Original Responder Credibility
This foundation is guided by firsthand experience from one of the original military responders deployed to the Pentagon on 9/11.
9/11 Education
We teach future generations what happened, who responded, what was sacrificed, and why remembrance still matters.
Remembrance
We preserve the memory of September 11 through public campaigns, memorial work, storytelling, and historic acts of remembrance.
9/11 Family Support
We support families still carrying the visible and invisible cost of September 11 and the illnesses that followed.
We refuse to let their sacrifice disappear.
The Johnson-Brower Foundation exists to preserve the legacy of September 11 through education, remembrance, and direct support for military families, veterans, first responders, and the people still living with the consequences of service.
This campaign exists because the families left behind are still carrying the emotional, financial, and personal cost decades later. We believe America has a responsibility to remember them, stand beside them, and teach future generations why their sacrifice mattered.
Current campaign:
help a 9/11 family.
Behind every fallen responder is a family forced to keep moving forward after the cameras leave and the headlines disappear. This campaign exists to help one of those families carry the burden they should never have had to carry alone.
Supporters can directly help the family while also entering to win a custom 2002 Harley-Davidson CVO Road King Screamin Eagle built to honor the 25th Anniversary of September 11 and the spirit of the American heroes who answered the call.
People deserve proof their support made a difference.
People should never have to wonder where their support went. This campaign was intentionally built to protect the family while still giving supporters visible proof that the process was real, transparent, and accountable.
Publicly Documented
The winner selection process will be publicly documented so supporters can verify that the process happened.
Screen Recorded
The selection process will be recorded and preserved for documentation.
Third-Party Verified
The process will include outside verification and public documentation to build trust.
One man walked nearly 500 miles
so America would remember.
For the 20th anniversary of September 11, Jesse Johnson-Brower became the first person in history to walk between Ground Zero, the Flight 93 National Memorial, and the Pentagon Memorial — carrying the memory of the fallen across six states so future generations would never forget. Much of his story remains intentionally private.
Beginning the journey toward Ground Zero.
Walking through Pennsylvania toward Flight 93.
Arriving at the Pentagon Memorial on September 11, 2021.
Honest answers.
Complete transparency.
Is a donation required to enter?
No. No purchase or donation is required to enter. The official sweepstakes page will include the free-entry method and full rules.
Who does this campaign support?
The campaign supports the anonymous widow and four daughters of a recently lost 9/11 responder who died from 9/11-related illness. The family’s identity is protected for privacy and safety.
What percentage goes to the family and mission?
At least 80% of gross funds raised go directly toward the family and mission.
How will the winner be selected?
The winner selection process will be screen recorded, third-party verified, and publicly documented.
Help guide future generations
toward remembrance.
Your support helps preserve 9/11 education, support 9/11 families still living with the consequences of service, and fund mission work that keeps America remembering.
Choose monthly educational support or an annual remembrance gift built around the number America must never forget. Since Jesse and Tara have personally carried most of the foundation overhead for years, every commitment directly strengthens the mission.