EXETER TWP., Pa. – A Berks County School District will hold its annual 9/11 Remembrance Day for its staff and students.
69 News Reporter Sydney Kay was in Exeter Township Senior High School ahead of Friday morning’s ceremony.
The 9/11 remembrance ceremony has been taking place at the school district for the last 25 years. It’ll happen at the Don Thomas Stadium at 7:30 a.m. The event is not open to the public but is being held for the school community.
First responders, political leaders, staff, and students have all come together in the past for the ceremony to hear stories shared from that tragic day in honor of those who answered the call to respond.
This year, two heroes will be honored.
A nurse who responded to the Shanksville Flight 93 crash will share her firsthand experience as part of the mental health support team in the weeks following the attacks.
An EMT and Central Berks fireman will be honored for his service as a first responder and military veteran.
The district says it’s taken a solemn promise to never forget the innocent lives lost and the heroes who sacrificed everything on September 11, 2001. The district says it encourages its students, all of whom were not born when the tragedy struck, to learn, understand, and reflect.
Tom Campbell, Principal of Exeter Township Senior High School, said organizers think it’s really important for the community to come together to remember and honor.
Everyone who was around when it happened knows exactly where they were that day, he said.
He said peoples’ lives were shaped in the weeks and months after the attacks. Campbell said he’d like students to pause and realize that we still live in the shadow of 9/11.