Salem honors lives lost in Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on 25th anniversary

SALEM -- The city of Salem honored the lives lost in the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, on the 25th anniversary of that historic day in a memorial ceremony Friday.

Friday marked 25 years since four commercial airplanes were hijacked in a coordinated terrorist attack which left 2,977 people dead.

During a memorial ceremony at Lincoln Plaza Friday morning, Air Force Lt. Col. Scott Allen described that dark day as "one of the most influential moments in modern history." He said that the events of that day led to seismic and lasting shifts in governance, financial institutions, and aviation not just in the United States, but internationally.

However, Allen said there was no impact greater than to the lives of "tens of thousands" of people who lost a loved one that day and during the rescue efforts and military operations which followed. It was that irreplaceable loss that Allen said the assembled speakers and audience were there to honor and remember.

"Many of us will never forget the feelings of horror, the feelings of sorrow, and the feelings of rage at an attack on our country designed to extract the greatest loss of life possible," Allen said.

Allen said that the ceremony, which saw three crosses adorned with the protective equipment used by fire fighters, police, and service workers, was also to recognize the sacrifices of first responders and emergency service personnel made that day and, in the rescue and recovery efforts that followed; and of their ongoing service to their communities. He said that in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks 343 firefighters and 72 police officers gave their lives with countless more working tirelessly to rescue victims and restore order, while more than 600 rescue and recovery workers have passed from illnesses related to the collapse of the World Trade Center.

In addition to Allen, the ceremony featured remarks from City Councilmen Mike Weir and Jim Harrington, Police Chief J.T. Panezott, Fire Chief Scott Mason, Parks Director Kelli Pastore, Mayor Cyndi Baronzzi Dickey, Environmental Health Director Charles Weatherly, and U. S. Air Force Maj. (Retired) Brad Forrider, who shared stories of their memories of the attack and aftermath.

All the speakers recalled the way that people across the country united as one in the wake of the attacks from military personnel being placed on notice for immediate deployment, to law enforcement and first responders rushing to assist the injured, and every day civilians supporting one another and lining up around the country to donate blood for hours at a time. They all also discussed how across the nation the crash of American Airlines Flight 11 into the North Tower of the World Trade Center at 8:46 a.m. was initially believed to be an accident, and of the dawning horror that crept across the country as news was shared that United Airlines Flight 175 had struck the South Tower of the World Trade Center at 9:03 a.m. and the attack was recognized for what it truly was.

"I can't fathom exactly what was going through the minds of those men and women when they went to the scene that day, but I know that they knew people needed help and nothing was going to stand in their way," Mason said.

Pastore said that had her flight to New York City to begin her new job at Morgan Staley not been rescheduled, she would have been standing in the South Tower of the World Trade Center when United Airlines Flight 175 struck the building. For her part Dickey, who is Pastore's mother, said that when she first saw footage of American Airlines Flight at the hospital where she worked, she mistook it for a disaster film. She said that once she was told what had actually occurred, she felt like she had been "glued to the floor" as she began making phone calls to try to check on Pastore, whom she believed was inside the World Trade Center until they spoke around noon.

Dickey said that despite the horror of the day that she had never felt as much joy as she did when she heard Pastore's voice and knew she was safe.

Dickey also reflected on her first visit to the site where United Airlines Flight 93's was crashed into a farmer's field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers banded together to retake the plane from hijackers. She said that the memorial, which now stands at the site, hadn't been built yet, with only a snow fence erected to prevent onlookers from wandering further into the property owner's fields.

Dickey said that the grass had just begun to regrow following the crash and subsequent excavations and was a different color than the rest of the field, and that it had grown "into the nearly perfect shape of a heart."

Dickey said that while measures have since been taken to prevent future attacks, that a tragedy could strike at any time and people should consider what would happen, and what they would do if one occurred in their community. She said that she had no doubt that Salem's first responders and service workers would immediately leap into action to protect their community as they do every day when they make the decision to face unknown perils for the benefit of others.