There were remembrances for the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks throughout the D.C. area Thursday, as the country marks 24 years since the deadliest terror attacks on U.S. soil.
Gaithersburg
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The annual Gaithersburg, Maryland, tribute to fallen firefighters in 2025 included several references to the sense of national determination and unity that buoyed the nation in the days after Sept. 11, 2001.
At the 2025 Gaithersburg 9/11 Memorial Climb at RIO Washington Center, dozens of volunteers, including firefighters in full gear, climbed the approximately 10-level parking garage 21 times, to approximate the 110 stories firefighters climbed at the World Trade Center towers on Sept. 11, 2001.
Gaithersburg Mayor Jud Ashman paid tribute to the 343 firefighters who died on that day, responding to hijacked plane crashes in New York City.
“They demonstrated what it truly means to lay down one’s life for another,” Ashman said. “They were courageous, and selfless, and we honor and remember them for their heroic acts.”
Ashman said he hoped those recalling the fallen firefighters might spur members of the public to also recall the period of national unity experienced in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, in the midst of the current climate of political enmity.
“It’s as if there are still carcinogens in the air, as there were at Ground Zero on 9/11,” Ashman said. “We see it manifested in the coarseness that’s infected our discourse — our suppositions about our friends, and family, and neighbors, with whom we may disagree, and our loss of connection about what’s really special about this country.”
In the event, organized by the National Fallen Firefighters Association, Neil Cohen was the guest speaker, along with his wife, Arlene.
The couple’s son, Sander, was killed Dec. 8, 2017, while assisting a disabled vehicle on Interstate 270. Sander was a 33-year-old deputy chief with the Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office and a lieutenant with the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department.
Neil Cohen also alluded to the political and cultural divisiveness being experienced in the U.S., comparing it to firefighters’ spirit exhibited on 9/11.
“Those men, who ran into those buildings — they were Jewish, they were Christian, they were Muslim — they didn’t care what you were,” Cohen said. “They were there, dedicated to save people, and they didn’t care who you were.”
Cohen said the firefighters’ bravery and selflessness symbolized the goals of the nation.
“If we can carry that feeling forward and communicate that ideal to our next generation, we have succeeded,” Cohen said.
Arlington
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Over in Arlington, Virginia, a color guard along with dozens of fire and rescue personnel and police officers were on hand for a wreath laying at the flagpole outside the Ellen M. Bozman Government Center.
Fire Captain David Santini remembered the 184 victims who died when a hijacked plane slammed into the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m. on Sept. 11, 2001.
“We come together today to honor and remember the lives that were lost and to express our gratitude to all those who responded that day and every day since in service to their fellow citizens.”
Santini also asked people to remember 9/11 first responders who have died in the years following the terrorist attacks.
“Since 2001, hundreds more have died as the result of cancer and other illnesses associated with their rescue and recovery efforts,” Santini said.
One of those first responders, according to Santini, was Arlington Officer Harvey Snook who died in 2016.
Alexandria
Several hundred people volunteered to clean head stones Thursday at Alexandria National Cemetery, including Callie Okey, who has several family members who serve in the military.
“For me, you know, doing this is just a little give back,” Okey said.
Greg Schleifman has volunteered at this event for the past five years.
“Being from Arlington and seeing the events of Sept. 11, I always like to give back to the community,” Schleifman said. “I have some friends whose relatives also died.”
Across the country many people volunteer every year on Sept. 11 as a way to honor the victims.
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