FORT DRUM, N.Y. (Oct. 8, 2015) -- Soldiers with 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (LI), traveled to New York City on Sept. 26 to participate in the 2015 Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers 5K run / walk alongside NYC first responders.
"Stephen Siller was in Squad 1, and when the towers were attacked, he was coming off shift," said Sgt. 1st Class Ian Shepard, a platoon sergeant with D Company, 2-22 Infantry. "As soon as he got a call on the radio saying 'the towers were hit,' he donned all his gear and tried to get through the Brooklyn Tunnel, but it was congested with everyone trying to get out of the city. So with all his gear, he dismounted and ran the entire tunnel all the way to the towers, which is about 5K.
"Basically what the tunnel run represents is his run in full kit from the entrance of the tunnel all the way to the towers where his last known position was," Shepard added. "He ran a 5K and then climbed up 40 flights of stairs in full gear."
About 30 Triple Deuce Soldiers went to New York City to participate in the run, which was conducted Sept. 27. More than 30,000 people attended the event to support each other and run together to remember the fallen.
"Every New York City first responder that was killed had a person there representing them with a flag that they had over them with the person's photo and his engine or truck company that he belonged to," said 1st Sgt. James Card, first sergeant for D Company, 2-22 Infantry. "The same with the NYPD officers. They were there supporting their guys with their badge number, and the EMTs and Port Authority. Basically everybody that was a first responder who was killed when the towers came down was represented on that run."
Not only did people participate in the run, the streets were lined with fire trucks from multiple departments to support the cause.
"It was kind of like reliving the run that Stephen did," said 1st Lt. Martin Bye, a platoon leader with D Company, 2-22 Infantry. "The second you step out of the tunnel the towers are right there in front of you."
The route that the participants ran was the same that Stephen Siller took on 9/11.
"It's kind of the reverse of what (Siller) would have seen, because when he came out, there was tragedy, but when we came out we saw the new towers and had all these people cheering us on, so it's a difference in what he sacrificed and what we were running for," Shepard added.
During their visit to New York City, Soldiers of Triple Deuce also visited the 9/11 Memorial.
"I felt like it had a huge impact on me and opened up my eyes as far as the fire departments and what they do, what they sacrificed during 9/11," said Spc. Johnny Winchester, a section sergeant with D Company, 2-22 Infantry.
Not all of the participating Soldiers remembered what they were doing at the time of 9/11, but after leaving, they all had the same mutual respect for the first-responders during the tragedy.
"It really tied into the run," Card said. "For a lot of these young guys, they were only 4 or 5 years old when the towers came down, and after talking to them, I was the only one on active duty at that time, so we got to see why for the last 15 years we've been doing what we've been doing. For them it really put things into context."
Next year, Card anticipates having a group of Soldiers from Triple Deuce return to New York City, but to conduct a stair climb, much like what Siller did.
"My opinion is (the first-responders) fought the first battle of the war, and we just picked it up, so there is a good mutual respect between (Fort Drum) and the NYPD," Card added. "For us, this is our generation's Pearl Harbor. This is why men and women have been joining the military for the past 15 years."
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