Park City commemorates 9/11 anniversary as nation marks 25 years

PARK CITY, Utah — Governor Spencer Cox ordered flags to fly at half staff today as the country commemorates the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

“As we mark 25 years since the September 11 attacks, we remember the lives lost and the courage and sacrifice that followed,” said Gov. Cox. “For millions of Americans, September 11 is now history rather than memory. That makes our promise to ‘never forget’ even more important: to tell the story, honor those we lost and carry the lessons of that day forward.”

Communities across the Wasatch Back are marking the anniversary through remembrance events and service activities.

At the Park City Police Department, community members gathered early Friday morning to stand alongside local first responders to remember those who lost their lives in the attacks.

“Twenty-five years later, we continue to honor their memory, their courage, and the extraordinary sacrifice of the first responders who answered the
call that day,” the department said in a release. “We will never forget.”

The ceremony included a bagpipe performance of “Amazing Grace,” that offered tribute to “those we lost and to the heroes whose courage and
sacrifice will never be forgotten,” said the department.

Wasatch Back communities are also observing the 9/11 National Day of Service. Heber City will hold their Day of Service on Saturday, September 12, and Serve Park City is hosting the Day of Service on Saturday, September 19, with 44 community projects.

The events come as the National Park Service announced new federal support Thursday for two of the nation’s major 9/11 memorials, including a new designation for the Pentagon memorial.

The NPS awarded $4 million through the 9/11 Memorial Act Grant Program to support the operation, security and maintenance of the National September 11 Memorial in New York City and the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial in Arlington, Virginia.

The NPS also announced that the Pentagon Memorial has been designated an Affiliated Area of the National Park System.

The designation formally recognizes the national significance of the memorial, which commemorates the 184 people killed at the Pentagon and aboard American Airlines Flight 77.

The National Park Service already manages Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania, where 40 passengers and crew members are memorialized.

Twenty-five years later, the anniversary remains both a commemoration of those who were lost and a reminder of the first responders, volunteers, and communities that came together in the days that followed.