by Jackie Nunnery
Maj. Francisco Gonzalez and cadets of the Northumberland High School U.S. Army Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC) on Friday, September 11, marked the 25th anniversary of 9/11 with a remembrance ceremony.
First responders from Fairfields Volunteer Fire Department, Northumberland County Rescue Squad and Northumberland County Sheriff’s Office joined community members and the student body in a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m., the moment American Airlines Flight 93 struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center.
Gonzalez asked those gathered to “take a moment to truly take in what’s around us. Before you stand 2,977 U.S. flags standing shoulder to shoulder in the morning sun. Each flag represents a story cut short on September 11, 2001. A mother, a father, a son, a daughter, a teacher, a soldier, a firefighter, a police officer, a paramedic.”
He highlighted the contributions of first responders, civilian passengers of Flight 93, and “ordinary citizens in every small town across this nation, including right here in the Northern Neck, who lined up to donate blood, pack supplies and comfort their neighbors.”
He also told the students, all born after 9/11, “to carry forward the values that defined America on 9/11. Service and sacrifice are not reserved only for those who wear a military uniform or drive an emergency vehicle. Service is a mindset. When you look at these 2,977 flags today, do not see them as just cloth and wood. See them as a call to action. Let every flag remind you to live a life worthy of their sacrifice.”
