Fort Sill remembers 9/11

FORT SILL, Okla. (Sept. 18, 2014) -- Second Lt. Scott Patterson recalled Sept. 11, 2001, at Morton Elementary School in Arlington, Texas.

"I remember walking into my fifth grade classroom, it was the only one that had a TV, it was crowded and I saw my teacher (Mr. Steiner) crying. He was frantically calling on the phone trying to get hold of his brother, who was in the North Tower."

That night at home, Patterson recalled his mother, Rory trying to get information about her son, Sean, who was in the Navy.

"I was sitting there watching TV and my mother was trying to explain what terrorism was and what had happened to me and my sixth-grade brother, Jonathan," Patterson said. "The most vivid moment was seeing people celebrating in the Middle East burning the American flag. It kind of shook me out of my naivety about the world: The world is not a safe place, America is not safe, there are threats and dangers out there. That's the reason I wear the uniform today."

Patterson was one of the students in Air Defense Artillery Basic Officer Leader Course-Branch Class No. 03-14, who shared 9/11 memories as the class held memorial activities Sept. 11.

That day students conducted a remembrance at 6 a.m. where individuals were invited to share their 9/11 stories. Next, a Flag to Flag run began which continued until retreat at Prichard Field here. At 5 p.m. the 30th ADA Brigade Unit Ministry Team hosted a dinner for all those who ran, as well as Directorate of Fire and Emergency Services personnel.

The events were part of the Community Caring Officers class project, said 2nd Lt. Warren Geary, ADA BLOC-B student.

"We do a lot of community service projects from mentoring students in the local community to cleaning up the wildlife refuge to this particular event," Geary said.

It also drew participation from other BOLC classes; cadre at 2nd Battalion, 6th ADA; students from the ADA Captains Career Course, Team Red, White and Blue running club; and Directorate of Fire and Emergency Services, said 2nd Lt. Juliette Wallerstein, ADA BOLC-B student.

"Anyone was invited to participate because everyone was touched by this horrific event 13 years ago," she said. Veterans, families even wheelchair bound people were welcome.

At Prichard Field buddy teams of between two and four people ran for 15 minutes around the .89-mile trail carrying a 9/11 flag. The subdued flag looked similar to the U.S. flag, but featured the names of the every person who died in the 9/11 attacks.

"The run is about teamwork so no one runs the flag alone," Geary said. "Our country really became a team after 9/11."

Sgt. 1st Class Kleber Soriano, D Battery, 2-6th ADA, Counter - Rocket, Artillery and Mortar instructor, ran with three of his co-workers at Prichard.

"We're going to run to show that we care about our country and to remember those who passed away," said Soriano, who was a 23-year-old specialist on 9/11. "That's the most important thing -- to remember that day and the people."

He added that D/2-6th ADA provided a lot of Soldier participation at the Flag to Flag run.

Throughout day various shifts of Fort Sill firefighters came by Prichard Field. Captain Scott Robinson, Fort Sill firefighter, led a group of firefighters who walked the trail wearing bunker suits and carrying about 45 pounds of gear.

"We came out to support our fallen brothers because 9/11 is very important to us," said Robinson, who was 37 and working the shift at Fire Station No. 2 here that day. "We lost 343 brothers and the families (on 9/11) plus the military members since."

The idea of a 9/11 remembrance was solely student driven, said Capt. Richard Elias, Headquarters A/2-6th ADA commander.

"It's an amazing thing that they came up with to provide a tribute, and to share it with Fort Sill," Elias said. "I guess they (Wallerstein and Geary) used to do this at West Point."

A brief was put together and pitched to the battalion and brigade commands and they all approved, he said.

Geary and Wallerstein, who will graduate Nov. 21 with 50 other classmates, said they want to the event to become a tradition.

"We hope that next year it will become a brigade event and the year after that it becomes a post event," Geary said.