YOUNGSTOWN — Even though one of the nation’s darkest and terror-filled days took place a few years before he was born, Alexander Rothwell struggled to hold the tears in check.
“It’s still pretty emotional for me to see what happened and all of the individuals involved, and innocent bystanders. It’s hard to watch for very long,” said Rothwell, 23, a cadet in Youngstown State University’s four-month police academy program. “I’m proud to be an American, and I’m not ashamed to say that.”
Rothwell, who graduated earlier this year from Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pa., and his fellow cadets were among those who attended an emotional and somber remembrance ceremony and program Friday afternoon in YSU’s Cushwa Hall to remember the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and honor the nearly 3,000 lives lost that day after 19 terrorists commandeered four commercial flights and flew three of them into buildings.
Throughout the gathering, the names of those who perished in the attacks scrolled down a screen, while another screen provided a timeline of how the day’s tragic events played out.
“It’s super important we remember the ultimate sacrifice first responders have made,” Rothwell said, adding that his father served in the U.S. Air Force.
As tragic as the events of 9/11 were, lessons can be gleaned from the terrorist attacks, as well as other occurrences in the nation, big and small, he said.
Also at Friday’s program was Kendall Johnson, 20, a YSU junior and exercise science major, who said she was thankful that illness had prevented a cousin whose job was on an upper floor in one of the World Trade Center towers from reporting to work that day. The cousin still lives in New York City, Johnson added.
“I hope people remember the first responders and their sacrifices even as they attempted to save others in the buildings when they knew they would likely not make it out,” she said.
YSU President Bill Johnson recalled that on the day of the terrorist attacks in New York City, at the Pentagon and on United Flight 93 that crashed in a remote field near Shanksville Pa., he was en route to his office in Colorado when his youngest daughter called crying after the first plane had struck the World Trade Center’s north tower shortly after 8 a.m. Eastern Time.
“She said, ‘Dad, did you hear the news?’ and I said, ‘No, I’ve been on the road and it takes me an hour and a half to get to work,’” Johnson recalled.
A short time later, his daughter called again, but this time she was screaming after having seen TV footage showing the second plane flying into then striking the south tower, Johnson remembered.
Initially, he assumed the first incident had been a terrible accident with a small plane that hit the upper portion of the 110-story building, but what happened about 15 minutes later erased all doubt, he continued.
“I knew then it was an attack and that life had changed,” Johnson said, adding, “This is our generation’s memory, but it’s more than a memory; it’s something that’s etched in the fabric of our souls.”
The events of 9/11 also reinforce the notion that, contrary to being something people can take for granted, freedom often comes at “a tremendous, tremendous price,” even though we rarely know who will be among those to pay such a cost, he said.
Johnson, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, also offered gratitude to first responders and those serving in the military for acting as guardians and gatekeepers to protect the nation’s freedoms. Given their selfless actions, courage and strength on 9/11, they represent the best of “the indomitable spirit, the heartbeat of Americans,” Johnson said, adding that it’s also our duty to tell the story of that tragic day to future generations.
Edward Villone, the YSU police academy’s commander and coordinator, reminded attendees that nearly everyone spent Sept. 10, 2001, in routine ways, having no idea of the horror that would unfold the following morning. Many of those who responded to the tragedy to save others paid the ultimate price for what lots of others take for granted, Villone said.
Most people who are old enough remember precisely where they were, what they were doing and how they were feeling on Sept. 11, 2001, though it’s easy to forget that others died later from residual effects of the terrorist attacks, he added.
Preceding the program was a one-mile morning remembrance walk around the campus, with signs along the way that contained information about the events of that day, Rebecca Rose, university spokeswoman, said. An estimated 100 took part in the walk, she added.
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