The San Luis Obispo Fire Department held a remembrance ceremony to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks alongside the San Luis Obispo Police Department and Mayor Erica Stewart this morning.
At Station #1, local officials honored the victims and the first responders killed during the attacks.
The ceremony began with a presentation of colors, with uniformed firemen marching alongside uniformed police officers holding ceremonial axes and rifles, respectively. The Central Coast Pipes and Drums walked alongside them before the California Highway Patrol flew a helicopter overhead, and Sergeant Michael Smiley performed a rendition of the trumpet song “TAPS” to commemorate lives lost.
Fire Chief Randy Harris spoke about the service of New York firefighters and their exemplification of “the call to action” that first responders answer, despite “not knowing if it will be [their] last.”
“You simply know that someone needs help, and you go,” Harris said.
Stewart praised the courage of New York’s first responders on 9/11. She said it is important for people to “keep remembering to ask, ‘How can I help?”
“I think about the courage, the courage that inspires all of us to continue to serve this community,” Stewart said.
Police Chief Rick Scott spoke next and said that the best way to honor the first responders killed is to show thanks to first responders across the country.
“We’ll forever remember our heroes and how grateful we are as a country to have women and men like that willing to stand up for our safety,” Scott said.
After the San Luis Obispo High School Chamber Singers performed a rendition of “America the Beautiful,” attendees placed white roses on top of a steel beam from one of the Twin Towers, a part of the station’s “Standing Tall” memorial.
Joe Little, the fire department’s emergency manager, said the ceremony shows how much 9/11 still impacts people today on a personal level but was glad to see the community come together.