9/11: America Still Remembers

Twelve years after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, America still remembers. That somber, fateful day is ingrained in the collective American psyche as we continue to go on through the years. On this day it is important to observe a moment of silence in memory of those who were lost on this day and honor their memory and their lives. Americans this year marked the 12th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in subdued ceremonies, taking the time to remember those who were lost. Of the total 2,977 who were killed in the attacks, 412 were emergency workers in New York City who responded to the World Trade Center. Last year the City of Loma Linda and residents from surrounding communities gathered together just outside the City of Loma Linda Fire Department on Loma Linda Drive on the evening of the 11th anniversary of the attacks to dedicate a relic from that fateful day; today a memorial containing a steel beam once belonging to the buildings at the World Trade Center recovered at Ground Zero stands in Loma Linda as a physical reminder of that day. Last year Nate Boucher of the Loma Linda Fire Department stated in a news release, “September 11, 2001 was a day that changed the way of life for all Americans forever. Now it’s a day that communities in cities across our country gather in remembrance and honor of the thousands of lives that were lost in the World Trade Center, at the Pentagon or on United Flight 93,” he said. Change our way of life we did. Since the attacks 12 years ago, 20 bills and joint resolutions of Congress dedicated to helping secure Americans’ safety in the wake of the attacks have been signed into law. Over 100 additional pieces of legislation have also passed through Congress since the attacks. Americans everywhere are encouraged on this day take a moment to remember those who lost their lives in the attacks, those who fought bravely to save others in the aftermath, for those families who live every day without their loved ones, and for each citizen who lives today in post-9/11 America.