Los Angeles County: Memorial gatherings include speeches, displays, reflection, prayers and acts of service
The strength and unity of Americans were on display Saturday as cities across Los Angeles County commemorated the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.
The tributes began early, especially at LAX where a moment of silence was held at 5:46 a.m. to echo the time that American Airlines Flight 11, which departed Boston Logan International Airport for LAX, hit the World Trade Center’s North Tower, not long before another plane bound for LAX hit the World Trade Center’s South Tower at 6:03 a.m. Pacific time. The third flight bound for LAX, American Airlines Flight 77,
departed from Washington Dulles International Airport before hitting the Pentagon at 6:37 a.m. Pacific time.
“While New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia bore the brunt of this horrific day two decades ago, Los Angeles was also deeply impacted by the loss of the passengers and crew on the three planes that were originally heading to LAX that morning,” said Justin Erbacci, CEO of Los Angeles World Airports, the city agency that manages LAX.
A second moment of silence and a color guard ceremony was held at LAX at 8:43 a.m. inside the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Federal Inspection Station at Tom Bradley International Airport.
Some Torrance residents rose before the sun to honor the victims, survivors, families and first responders of the attacks at 5:46 a.m. in front of City Hall.
“Among the passengers on that flight was John Wenckus, a 46-yearold Torrance resident returning home from a visit with his family,” Torrance Mayor Pat Furey said.
Wenckus was traveling from Boston back to Southern California with a friend, John Hofer of Long Beach, from his family’s annual golf tournament in Cape Cod.
“I didn’t know John,” Furey added. “But like so many folks, he came to the Golden State and Torrance to follow his dreams. One can only wonder what great things he could have accomplished.”
Torrance Police Chief Jeremiah Hart said scenes from that day 20 years ago still resonate with him.
“I will never forget the silence when the first plane struck the tower,” he said. “Firefighters climbed up stairs they would never descend, and yet they moved on still. Police officers running through smoke even though they couldn’t see and they moved on still. Citizens moving over rubble, unable to breathe and yet they moved on still.”
Palos Verdes Estates also held a sunrise service in front of City Hall, as officials offered words of comfort and Peninsula High School freshman Logan Gorsuch performed a musical tribute on the bagpipes.
In Signal Hill, secular and faith-based leaders gathered alongside first responders and community members for the city’s Celebration of Peace and Unity, which sought to honor all who have been affected by the Sept. 11 attacks.
The morning began with poems, recitations and an honor guard presentation before Signal Hill Mayor Edward Wilson addressed those in attendance.
“For the survivors of that September day, and the families of those we lost — wherever you are today — it is a great honor to be with you on this day, which I know is still difficult,” Wilson said. “We honor the first responders who did not think about the severity of the danger. At the time, all they knew was that there was an emergency and people — their fellow citizens — needed help.”
Saturday was the first time Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia had visited Signal Hill’s Unity Monument, which overlooks Cal State Long Beach’s Walter Pyramid, homes and mountains.
“I was mentioning to the team how beautiful it is — to look out and be pensive about what an awful, awful day that was, yet one that still inspires us as we move forward,” Garcia said.
Following prayers from Venerable Jared Kai Bo, a Buddhist monk, and Imam Tarek Mohammed, who spoke on the tenets of Islam, Rev. Jane Gould of St. Luke’s Episcopalian Church told the story of Christopher Newton, a St. Luke’s parishioner who lived in Long Beach before he died in the Pentagon attack two weeks after starting a new job. Living just north of Boston Logan international Airport at the time, Gould remembers the images of smoke and fire quite clearly, in addition to people stading in long lines to give blood at Boston-area hospitals.
“We couldn’t reach my sister in New York who worked on the 52nd story of a high-rise. We couldn’t reach my sister in Washington, D.C., who worked at the State Department,” Gould said. “At the end of the day my sisters were safe, but Christopher Newton and thousands of others were not.”
A few miles up the road, 200 flags waved in Paramount where the city created a field of American banners under the Hay Tree at Paramount Boulevard and Civic Center Drive.
“This field of flags honors the memory of those lost on that awful day two decades ago and those lost since then in the subsequent war on terror,” Mayor Brenda Olmos said.
In Malibu, nearly 3,000 flags waved on the campus of Pepperdine University in an annual tribute to those who died in the attacks. Additional flags are in place honoring each country that lost a citizen.
Rosemead hosted its annual ceremony with a flag raising and wreath laying adjacent to the city’s Sept. 11 memorial — a public sculpture titled “Reflect” by artist Heath Satow, whose creation depicts two hands with dove cutouts that hold a large I-beam from the World Trade Center.
In Pasadena, members of the city fire and police departments gathered at the Tournament of Roses’ Tournament House for a sunrise flag ceremony.
Bob Miller, president of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association, spoke on everyone’s behalf.
“Today we commend the heroic actions and courage of the rescue workers, firefighters, police officers and military personal who worked tirelessly at ground zero,” Miller said. “By dawn’s early light, we raise the American flag — a symbol of reflection, a symbol of respect and a symbol of the nation mourning together.”
Not far away, a wreathlaying ceremony coincided with the rededication of the Pasadena Senior Center’s flagpole, which was vandalized in February 2020 but reinstalled this weekend to honor all who perished 20 years ago.
Thousands of volunteers also gathered at the Los Angeles Convention Center to pack an estimated 200,000 meals for the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. The event is in recognition of 9/11 being designated a National Day of Service.
Students of Sun Valley Magnet School’s leadership program hosted the final day of their part memorial and part museum that was dedicated to the events of Sept. 11, 2001, and their impact on American society. Included were scale models of the World Trade Center towers, a mock-up of an airport terminal and a 15foot American flag, where the students have written the names of the nearly 3,000 victims of the terror attacks.
One of the final events of the night was at the Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley.
The outdoor event included a reflection of what happened on 9/11 in New York City by Marc Manfro, a retired New York Police Department transit officer.
Skywriting also wowed the crowd, as did the keynote speaker, retired Col. David Sutherland, who served for 29 years as a special assistant to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the United States Department of Defense. Sutherland, the co-founder and chairman of the Center for Military and Veterans Community Services, is an advocate for services to help and support post9/11 veterans.
Attendees who arrived earlier in the day were able to visit a gallery dedicated to the events of 9/11 that is part of the museum’s special exhibit, “FBI — From Al Capone to Al-Qaeda” that runs through Jan. 9.
Melissa Giller, chief marketing officer for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute, enjoyed Saturday night’s ceremony.
“Tonight was a moving tribute to our fallen soldiers, first responders and civilians who lost their lives on 9/11 and in the subsequent years,” she said in a statement. “It was an honor to be a part of this commemoration ceremony. We will never forget.”
With the moon settled over Southern California, the pylons at Los Angeles International Airport shined red, white and blue as they have since Friday. The effects are expected to continue this evening.