Ten years ago, I had just arrived at work on a September day when my phone rang. It was my boss, who was not yet in the office; his first words were, “Turn on the TV.” “What channel?” I asked. “Any channel,” came the reply.
Everyone who lived through it has a story of where they were and what they were doing when they heard that the World Trade Center had been attacked. The events of 9/11 will live on in the minds of a generation the way people previously remembered JFK’s assassination or the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
This weekend, Baylor will commemorate the 10th anniversary of 9/11 with a series of exhibits and events:
- A quilt honoring soldiers who have lost their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan since 9/11 is on display today in the Allbritton Foyer of Moody Memorial Library. Baylor is the quilt’s last stop before heading to Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C.
- Now through Sunday, flags on Fountain Mall (provided by the Baylor Young Conservatives of Texas) honor each of the victims lost in the attacks.
- An exhibit at Poage Legislative Library (with supplementary exhibits at Moody and Jones libraries) recaps the events of 9/11 and the lasting aftermath through newspaper front pages and other documents.
- Today at 3 p.m. outside Moody, “A Tribute to Fallen Heroes” will remember the men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces who have given their lives in service and honor those who serve today. The event will also recognize Baylor’s Air Force and Army ROTC detachments and the approximately 120 veterans currently attending Baylor.
- Sunday at 2 p.m., University Carillonneur Lynnette Geary will play a memorial recital on the McLane Carillon in the Pat Neff Hall Tower. The recital is free and open to the public; guests are invited to bring lawn chairs or blankets to Founders Mall.
- Sunday at 5 p.m., a service of remembrance will be held in Waco Hall. Texas State Sen. Brian Birdwell, who survived the attack on the Pentagon on that fateful day, will be the featured speaker. The service is open to the public.
- Monday at 4 p.m. in Miller Chapel, religion professors Drs. Natalie Carnes, Reggie Williams and Bill Bellinger will lead a panel discussion on “9/11: A Decade Later.”
Today’s college students might be among the last to remember the events clearly; they were between 8 and 12 years old when the attack took place — third- through sixth-graders who were just barely reaching an age where they might be learning and able to understand international politics and relations.
Rather than end this post with the typical “sic ‘em,” instead we’ll end with solemn silence in memory of those who died on and following 9/11.
