Western New England University to Honor Alumnus and World Trade Center Victim James G. Geyer on Twentieth Anniversary of 911
SPRINGFIELD, MA (09/08/2021) Western New England University College of Business will honor alumnus James “Jimmy” Geyer ’82 on Friday, September 10. A brief ceremony of remembrance will be held at 12:00 noon in front of Churchill Hall, which houses the College of Business.
Geyer, who worked as a bond trader for Cantor Fitzgerald, was killed twenty years ago in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City. He was on the 105th floor when American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the building on September 11th. Geyer was a General Business major and native of Rockville Centre, NY.
According to College of Business Dean Dr. Sharianne Walker, he was known as an outstanding business student and campus leader who was committed to always helping others and asking for nothing in return.
“It is important for us to take a moment at this twentieth anniversary of the World Trade Center attack to remember Jimmy, as one of our own. It is important that all of us carry on his legacy of service and honor the promise that we will never forget the lives of those lost and those families that were devastated on that September morning,” said Walker.
A gifted student, Geyer excelled in finance and as an alumnus, he continued to stay connected as a mentor to College of Business students. Geyer played football for the Golden Bears for four years and was a member of the College’s first NCAA Division III program in 1981. His number, 22, was officially retired at the October 13, 2001 football game. He was a member of the Golden Bear lacrosse team and also had a passion for golf. Geyer was featured in an NCAA News article about former college athletes lost in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Geyer was 41 years old when he died. He left behind his wife Cathy and three children; his parents; two brothers; and a sister. The Jimmy Geyer Award for Courage is bestowed annually to a deserving member of the football team.
Western New England University (WNE) is a private, nationally ranked, comprehensive institution with a focus on preparing work-ready and world-ready graduates. Founded in 1919 in Springfield, Massachusetts as a division of Northeastern College, WNE’s 215-acre suburban campus serves more than 3,700 students, including over 2,500 full-time undergraduates. More than 47,000 alumni have earned degrees through its 90+ undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs at Colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business, Engineering, and Pharmacy and Health Sciences, and School of Law. Students come from 39 U.S. states and territories and 23 countries. Of 44,486 living alumni, 30% remain within the region, residing in the four Western Massachusetts counties and northern Connecticut.
WNE is classified among nationally ranked universities in US News and World Report, and among the Top 100 Undergraduate Engineering programs, and in the Doctoral/Professional Universities category in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.