Memorial ceremony highlights need to remember 9/11

By Mrs. Jennifer Bacchus (AMC)September 12, 2013

Memorial ceremony highlights need to remember 9/11
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Memorial ceremony highlights need to remember 9/11
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JACKSONVILLE, Ala. -- Lt. Col. David Schmitt, commander of Anniston Munitions Center, a tenant of Anniston Army Depot, was the keynote speaker for the annual Sept. 11 Memorial Service at Jacksonville's City Cemetery.

"Today, we remember the nearly 3,000 men, women and children who lost their lives in the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and we honor the more than 6,000 servicemembers who have given their lives in the conflicts that followed," said Schmitt.

He said that most people who were alive on that dreadful day remember one of three things about the event - the tragedy of those who died, the heroism of those who responded or the way the nation came together to heal.

Schmitt was stationed at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling Air Force Base, located across the Potomoc River from the Pentagon, on that date.

He recalled the confusion and fear he saw around him on that date, but one phone call is particularly etched in his mind.

"I will never forget the phone call I got at 4 a.m. on Sept. 12 directing me to report immediately, in my dress uniform to the casualty center at Fort Myer, Va.," he said.

At Fort Myer, Schmitt assisted with notifying the families of victims in the attack. He called it "the most difficult duty I have been asked to perform in over 21 years of service."

Schmitt said there were three things important to remember about Sept. 11, 2001, and to pass on to future generations:

1. The innocent people who lost their lives.

"All of them were innocently beginning a normal day," said Schmitt. "None of them deserved the fate that would befall them."

2. The heroism of the first responders and other, ordinary people who rushed toward the fires and toward the destruction, rather than away.

"Many people did survive because of the heroic acts of ordinary people," said Schmitt.

3. The way the nation came together in the aftermath.

"If the terrorists' intent was to divide us, they united us. If their intent was to shake us, they emboldened us. And, if their intent was to have us question our resolve, we became more resolute," said Schmitt.

Also participating in the ceremony were Pearl Williams, the mother of Maj. Dwayne Williams who died in the attack on the Pentagon; the Reserve Officer Training Corps cadets from Jacksonville State University; the choir from Jacksonville First Baptist Church; the Calhoun County Sheriff's Department honor guard; George Worman, the depot's chief legal counsel; and local pastors and dignitaries.