Alexandria leaders commemorated the 24th anniversary of the September 11 attacks on Thursday, Sept. 11, and reflected on the personal and societal impacts that followed.
Mayor Alyia Gaskins was joined by Sheriff Sean Casey, Fire Chief Felipe Hernandez, Jr., and Police Chief Tarrick McGuire onstage at Market Square in front of City Hall (301 King Street). Gaskins urged the audience to “remember the lives lost on 9/11 and to look forward with hope and a call to action for peace and a better world.”
Gaskins said that she was 11 years old, in elementary school in Pittsburgh, on the day of the attacks. She said that she lied to her teacher about being able to walk home that day, and when she walked home, she found a strange stillness in the air. Once home, she was greeted by her mother, who was in tears and tightly hugged her.
“As the days went on, that stillness I remember turned to action,” Gaskins said. “I remember participating in bake sales and community events, and all those young people as we started to figure out, trying to think through what our role is and what we could do in those moments. I remember thinking to myself, ‘This is truly what it means to be one nation under God,’ because every single person, whether they knew someone who was directly impacted or they knew what was going on. They just knew that they had to be a part of helping our country come together.”
Nearly 3,000 people were killed on 9/11 when terrorists flew commercial airliners into the Pentagon, the World Trade Center buildings in New York City, and into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
The Alexandria Fire Department responded to the Pentagon, and Fire Chief Felipe Hernandez, Jr. says that AFD worked shoulder-to-shoulder with neighboring jurisdictions to assist.
“Our teams worked tirelessly amidst fire, smoke, and devastation to search for victims, control the fire, and stabilize the scene,” Hernandez said. “They entered a heavily damaged building, moving floor by floor, bringing lights into darkened corridors and confronting unimaginable disruption with determination and courage.”
Hernandez continued, “That legacy of service is not abstract. It is personal. It lives on in the handful of AFD members still serving today who were on duty during 911 it lives on in the stories of our brothers and sisters who responded to the Pentagon carrying memories they would never forget, and it lives on in every new generation of AFD firefighters and medics who wear this uniform with the same commitment to answer the call, no matter the risk.”
Sheriff Sean Casey said that the anniversary should serve as a reminder to never give in to fear but to believe in hope.
“Each year, we gather and recall that unfathomable day we resolve to never forget, and we won’t forget, but we need to do something more,” Casey said. “We need to capture more of the kindness and compassion that emerged following the attacks. Please make a commitment to do what you can to support our community and counter evil and hate.”
Police Chief Tarrick McGuire said that the goal of law enforcement and public safety officials is to ensure that people can move freely without fear in public places.
“We will continue to stand, as we do every single year across our nation on this day, to remember those that rush toward danger,” McGuire said, “to remember those that gave their lives and to simply say thank you to the ones that continue to protect our democracy every single day.”
Also today, volunteers gathered at Alexandria National Cemetery to clean headstones and beautify the grounds. The volunteer event was organized by Carry The Load, a national nonprofit, and was part of a nationwide initiative spanning nearly 70 national cemeteries as an act of remembrance.
