Sunday, September 12, 2004
Solemn ceremonies mark tragic 2001 day
Southwest Virginians remembered Sept. 11 by praying, singing and reading victims' names.
The Roanoke Times
It wasn't the ceremony as much as the distractions that illustrated how things have changed since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
In large part, Saturday evening's 9/11 memorial in Salem felt like a normal outing. About 600 people gathered at Lake Spring Park, bringing American flags and lawn chairs. Parents chased laughing children around the grass. Ducks swam around the pond. A speaker even noted that Salem's football team still wins.
But the wailing fire truck, leaving the ceremony on an emergency call seemed to carry a more urgent tone.
Perhaps the biggest change has been seen by those in public safety. Speaker after speaker thanked police officers, firefighters and emergency medical technicians for their sacrifices, dedication and service.
Rob Johnson, a Salem Fire and EMS technician attending the ceremony, noted that people seemed more appreciative.
"Kids wave at us, and adults too," he said.
A stranger even bought breakfast for Johnson's crew members after they stopped at a restaurant on the way to a training session, he said.
Besides the acclaim, Roanoke-area agencies have also received more funding in the form of grants from the Department of Homeland Security, said Capt. David Cornett of Salem Fire and EMS.
Some things remain the same.
"We still do the same job we did before 9/11," Cornett said.
People throughout the Roanoke and New River valleys took part in similar ceremonies, praying, singing "The Star-Spangled Banner," reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, reading the names of the Sept. 11 attack victims and paying tribute to those in the military and public safety sectors.
At the Fallen Firefighters Memorial at the Virginia Museum of Transportation in downtown Roanoke, about 35 people gathered for a candlelight vigil, according to Capt. Chris Brown of the Roanoke Fire Department.
At the Virginia Tech football game, the announcer read a statement over Lane Stadium's public-address system remembering the attack victims. The Highty-Tighties - the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets marching band - then played patriotic songs for the fired-up crowd.
Saturday's brief ceremony was also intended to honor U.S. Army First Lt. Tim Price, a 2001 Tech graduate and corps alumnus who was killed in Iraq last week while attempting to set up a defensive perimeter around a military vehicle that was disabled by an improvised explosive device.
Price, a 25-year-old Midlothian resident, was the second Tech corps alumnus to be killed in the war in Iraq.
The observance culminated when a B-52 Stratofortress - the massive Air Force bomber in use since the Vietnam War - buzzed the stadium after the national anthem. The crowd roared in approval as the B-52 - with its wingspan of 185 feet - thundered overhead before banking to the left and disappearing over the horizon.
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