VALDOSTA —
At 8:46 a.m., with an early fall breeze carrying the faint sounds of camera shutters and passing traffic, Valdosta firefighters, police officers, public officials and citizens bowed their heads at Fire Station No. 1 in a moment of silence.
No doubt, with the American flag suspended over their heads by fire ladders, some thought of the faces of the members of their families while others remembered the harrowing video footage and images of smoking skyscrapers on Sept. 11, 2001.
Valdosta and Lowndes County both held 9/11 remembrance ceremonies Tuesday to honor those killed in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, as well as those emergency first responders and military servicemen risking their lives to protect U.S. citizens.
Following the silence orchestrated to coincide with the time American Airlines Flight 11 struck the North Tower — the first crash of four during the attack, Valdosta Mayor Pro Tem Alvin Payton Jr. delivered strong words to the audience.
“The Bible tells us, ‘Weeping may endure through the night, but joy cometh in the morning,’” he said, referring to the darkness of sorrow that America endured during the attacks and the re-building that has taken place since.
“The past 11 years tells the story of our resilience,” Payton continued. “A new Pentagon has been built; where the World Trade Center once stood, the sun glistens over a new city; people still work in skyscrapers; our stadiums are still filled with fans.”
Payton told the audience that the remembrance of 9/11 is “much more than monuments and memorials; it is a legacy of firefighters and first responders who walked into fire and burning buildings, and of soldiers who signed up to serve, of workers who raised those towers, of citizens who face fear and children who realize the dreams of their parents.
He left the audience with a final plea: “With a just God to guide us, let us honor those who have been lost, and re-dedicate ourselves to the ideas that define our country.”
The speech was met with sober applause. Following a short introduction about the local tradition by Fire Chief J.D. Rice, Frank Roberts, a Woodmen of the World field representative, delivered a neatly folded American flag to both the Valdosta Fire Department and the Valdosta Police Department.
“This is a small way we have of thanking those first responders here to protect us every day,” said Susan Kent, activities director for Woodmen of the World, Valdosta Lodge. “We’re proud to be Americans, and so proud of our American flag and the heritage for which it stands.”
The VFD then rang the bell code 3-4-3 for the memory of the 343 firefighters who died attempting to save civilians during the attack.
The VFD Pipe and Drum Corps played “Amazing Grace” during the ceremony, and from the back of the audience, corps member Jeff Thibodeau played taps on the trumpet.
At 11 a.m., in front of the 9/11 monument at the historical Lowndes County Courthouse, the Lowndes County Commission, Lowndes County Fire and Rescue and the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office gathered to place a wreath in remembrance of fallen heroes and victims.
Commission Chairman Ashley Paulk, with tears in his eyes, gave a short and quiet speech to police and firefighters at the event, shaking the hands of each and thanking them personally.
“We need to remember those people who are lost, but we also need to remember the people who are still here,” he said to the small gathering.
Commissioner Crawford Powell delivered a prayer at the event, imploring God to help us all to “turn from our wicked ways.”
“We confess we have slaughtered the innocent,” Powell said, referring to lives lost during overseas conflicts. “We pray that once again our country will be a city on a hill. Let’s not forget those who sacrifice for our freedom.”
Lowndes County Fire Chief Richard Guyton was happy to see the small, sober ceremony following the fanfare of last year’s 10th anniversary event, which was “very sedate” and “more appropriate,” he said.
“You never forget,” Guyton said about the attacks. “This is one of those days that if you were alive at that time, this day is seared into your memory.”
Guyton was training at the Alabama State Fire College when he first heard about the attack. He and his peers thought it was just an accident at first.
“As the morning progressed, we learned it was not an accident but was an attack on our country and on our freedoms, and the attitude changed from concern to outright fear throughout the day,” Guyton said.
Like most American institutions, the college released its students that day, Guyton said.
“It was a moment when you had to take time with your own family and sit down and think about the finality of life and what your country means to you,” he said.
Commissioner-elect John Page shared a similar story. He was at a Valdosta Chamber of Commerce Governmental Affairs Committee meeting. When the meeting adjourned, City Manager Larry Hanson’s beeper sounded, Page said.
“We all had beepers back then,” he said with a chuckle. “(Hanson) read the message, and he said, ‘My secretary just told me that a plane hit the World Trade Center in New York.’ And we said, ‘That’s strange,’ and kept on talking. No one knew at that point that it was a terrorist attack.”
Page heard the story on the radio in his car on the drive back to his house, and watched television coverage at home, he said.
“I think that really changed America that day,” Page said. “We realized we may be the greatest military power in the world, but we’re not immune to terrorist attack, and the sad thing is that innocent lives were lost. Nobody in those buildings had anything to do with al Qaeda or the Taliban or anything; it was just a senseless act.”
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