In Shanksville, Pa., it’s somber as hundreds of people file into the Memorial Plaza at Flight 93 National Memorial, ahead of the morning observance.
Family members have been approaching the Wall of Names all morning, laying flowers and posing for pictures in front of their loved one’s names.
Approximately 100 United Airlines flight crew members are present. They all processed in together.
Twenty artists battled light rain and breezy conditions to put the final touches on chalk portraits of the 40 victims aboard Flight 93. It’s nearly double the turnout from five years ago, when Erik Greenawalt first gathered artists from across the country to honor the passengers and crew members in Shanksville.
Emilie Ikeda / NBC News
“Chalk art is a lot like life,” Greenawalt said. “Everything we do is temporary, but memories are something that is everlasting, just like the heroism of Flight 93.”
The portraits are displayed along walkway to the Visitor’s Center through September 20 and are ultimately given to “Mother Nature.” Another artist, Shawn McCann from Minnesota, said, “Little pieces of their portraits will continue to blow into the grass and left here at the memorial site.”
Emilie Ikeda / NBC News