Ceremony in Edmonds marks 15-year anniversary of 9/11 attack

Published 1:30 am Monday, September 12, 2016

EDMONDS — Many came to honor, some to learn more about the meaning of day that for generations will be known simply as 9/11.

About 100 people, joined by members of the city’s police and fire departments, turned out for a commemorative ceremony Sunday morning — the 15th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that killed 2,977 people.

The crowd encircled the city’s 9/11 memorial on 6th Ave. N, where an ionized, one-ton beam salvaged from the debris of the World Trade Center is displayed.

Among those who attended the event was Terry Crabtree, of Mukilteo. The former employee of Bechtel Inc. was deployed to ground zero to help coordinate the cleanup of the site, working with federal, state and local government agencies.

He said his most enduring memory was watching as people who lost family members in the attack came to the site of the collapsed buildings, escorted by New York State Police.

Chris Szarek, of Lynnwood, a veteran who spent 20-years in the Navy, now directs the Veterans Resource Center at Edmonds Community College. “The enormity of the loss takes years to soak in,” he said. “It’s important to never forget.”

The ceremony was led by Dave “Bronco” Erickson, a firefighter for Fire District 1, who spearheaded the drive to have a beam from the World Trade Center brought to Edmonds so the city could establish its own 9/11 memorial.

The memorial includes elements to symbolize all the losses that day: the names of 343 firefighters, 60 police officers and eight emergency medical workers who died, and representations of the Twin Towers, the Pentagon and the four planes hijacked by terrorists.

Erickson retold the stories of what happened on the day he called “the worst terrorism attack in world history.” The fires at the World Trade Center site burned for 99 days, he said.

“This monument is for you so you would have a place to find solace and remembrance,” he said. “Please come visit the site often.”

Mayor Dave Earling said that attacks brought the nation together. “One of the things we need to remember is we do live in a great country,” he said.

After the ceremony ended, people gathered to get a closer look at the memorial. Some dabbed tears. Many spoke in hushed voices.

Brian Evans, of Lynnwood, stood leaning toward the beam with one hand raised high to touch it. He said nothing, a moment of private, emotional contemplation.

That’s the type of connection to the 9/11 attacks that Erickson said he hoped the memorial can continue to stir in those who come to the site.

In the year since its installation, visitors from across the country have sought it out as well as people from the Netherlands, Asia and Europe, he said.

“Not everybody has the chance to fly to New York City and see the museum there,” he said. “We were pleased to bring a bit of the artifact to Edmonds.

“You can come, have some solace, reflection and closure with a piece of the World Trade Center.”

Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486; salyer@heraldnet.com.