Remembering
By Kirsten Ballard And Ethan Smith
Published in News on September 11, 2014 2:06 PM
At Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, it was about hope -- about resiliency in the face of adversity.
In downtown Goldsboro, it was about remembering how a nation was wounded -- about vowing to ensure future generations grow old without the threat of terrorism.
Ceremonies unfolded across Wayne County this morning with a common purpose -- to mark a day that, more than a decade later, still evokes an array of emotions from those who lived it.
9/11, 4th Fighter Wing Vice Commander Col. Andrew Bernard said, exposed Americans to a "sense of vulnerability as we realized America could be reached by hands of terror."
And even now, the day after President Barack Obama addressed the nation about a new threat to freedom, the tragedy that enveloped a nation when planes crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, is still "vivid, perpetual and emotional."
But Bernard, speaking to the group that converged on the Seymour Johnson Air Force Base fire department for the installation's annual 9/11 remembrance, said the uniformed men and women he leads have chosen to look terror in the eye since that fateful day.
The attacks on New York and Washington did not make the nation strong and brave, he said.
Rather, it compelled its citizens to be stronger and braver.
"We have chosen to remain resilient," the colonel said.
Tears were shed as the base's fire chief struck a silver bell -- as the honor guard presented a 21-gun salute and a lone bugler played taps.
And when the ceremony concluded, airmen turned their pain into fuel -- dedicating themselves to a 24-hour run that won't end until several hours after the sun rises Friday.
Across town, speakers at the Wayne County Veterans Memorial said that on the day of the attacks, every American became a New Yorker.
"We're here today to give a part of our heart, our souls, and our nation to remember those that lost their lives on 9/11," veteran Bill Graham said.
And Wayne County Veterans and Patriots Coalition secretary Brian Volk, who earned the Purple Heart during the terrorist attack waged against Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia in 1996, said it was also a time to renew America's commitment to the fight against evil.
"Liberty will triumph over tyranny," Volk said.