Honoring the Victims of 9/11 Terrorist Attacks
By JOE POTTER
More than 50 people attended the 24th Annual Patriot Day Memorial Service held in Zephyr Park on Sept. 11th. The event was held in memory of and to honor the more than 2,900 people who lost their lives as a result of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11th, 2001.
Marine Corps League 1124 (MCL 1124) hosted the event, which was held by the Flagpole that is near the Zephyr Haven Health & Rehab Center. A few current and past officers of MCL 1124, which is named after Sgt. Maj. Michael S. Curtin led the event. Curtin had served in the U.S. Marine Corps for 12 years and was a member of the Marine Corps Reserve for six years. He joined the New York Police Department in January 1988 and became a member of its Emergency Service Squad (ESU) in July 1991. He was a sergeant in the ESU on Sept. 11, 2001when he perished while trying to rescue people from one of the towers of the collapsing World Trade Center in New York City, NY.
Ron Curci, Senior Vice Commander of MCL 1124, was the event’s Master of Ceremonies. Members of the Zephyr Airport Squadron of the Florida Wing of the Civil Air Patrol based in Zephyrhills posted the colors at the beginning of the event and retired them afterwards.
Rod Rehrig, Past Commandant of MCL 1124, led participants in the Pledge of Allegiance and the singing of the National Anthem, and led participants in the singing of God Bless America towards the conclusion of the event.
The keynote speaker, Bill Watson, Ed.D, gave a detailed account of the four commercial jetliners that were hijacked on Sept. 11, 2001, after leaving airports in the United States. Two of the hijacked jetliners crashed into the North and South towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, NY. One of them crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington, VA.
Watson said it was possible that the nation’s Capitol or the White House was the intended target of the fourth hijacked jetliner. However, the hijacker's mission failed when some of the passengers fought back and made it crash near the Town of Shanksville in Somerset County, PA.
“Terrorism has many faces,” Watson said. He added that many of the events that have unfolded since Sept. 11, 2001, have “challenged our humanity.” “Terrorism not only comes from the outside anymore – it comes from the inside,” he said, referring to the political assassination of Charlie Kirk that occurred in Orem, UT, the day before this year’s 9/11 Memorial Service.
“A divided nation can almost certainly fall. We need to remember the coming together we experienced on Sept. 12, 2001,” he said, adding, “That needs to happen again.”
“The only way we can move forward is to remember the past,” Watson said.
Members of MCL 1124’s Honor Guard presented a Rifle Salute to the Fallen towards the end of the event. One of its members also played Taps, which is unique to the United States military, as the call is sounded at funerals, wreath-laying ceremonies, and memorial services.
