Sept. 11 Widow Killed in Buffalo Plane Crash

In this Friday, May 24, 2002 file photo, Beverly Eckert, 50, of Stamford, Conn., holds a picture of...

In this Friday, May 24, 2002 file photo, Beverly Eckert, 50, of Stamford, Conn., holds a picture of her late husband Sean Rooney, 50, in Stamford, Ct. Eckert, one of the victims of Continental Flight 3407, was a Sept. 11 widow who lost her her husband Sean Rooney, her high school sweetheart, in the World Trade Center. (AP Photo/Douglas Healey, File)

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Up until the very last moments of her life, Sept. 11 widow Beverly Eckert poured her grief into action — pushing presidents, lawmakers and even herself to do more to make the country safer.

Eckert was on a commuter plane approaching the Buffalo airport Thursday night when it nose-dived into the ground, killing all aboard and one person on the ground.

President Barack Obama, speaking in the White House's East Room Friday, said Eckert "was an inspiration to me and to so many others, and I pray that her family finds peace and comfort in the hard days ahead."

Just a week before her death, Eckert met with Obama at the White House as part of a group of 9/11 families and relatives of those killed in the bombing of the USS Cole, discussing how the new administration would handle terror suspects.

Eckert was traveling to Buffalo to celebrate what would have been her late husband Sean Rooney's 58th birthday.

Former 9/11 Commissioner Tim Roemer said her passing was "a profound loss for the country."

The grim circumstances of her death were hard to accept, particularly for those who lost loved ones in the 2001 terror attacks.

"The fact that it was a plane crash, it was fire, it was reminiscent of 9/11 that way, that's just very difficult," said Carol Ashley, a retired schoolteacher from Long Island whose daughter died at the World Trade Center.

The women met after the 2001 attacks, and became active together on 9/11 family issues. Eckert's husband — who was also her high school sweetheart — had been at work on the 98th floor of the south tower.

Eckert , 57, cried often when telling others about how her husband called her that morning from the burning building and said he loved her.

All of the women were grieving, but Eckert seemed unable or uninterested in holding back her tears.

She carried that grief to Congress as she advocated for better anti-terror efforts, part of a small group of widows, mothers, and children who played the roles of lobbyists.