The Statesboro Fire Department and the Statesboro Police Departments held a joint 9/11 Memorial service Sunday morning at 9 AM at the Statesboro Police Department and Statesboro Fire Department headquarters on East Grady Street.
The 21st anniversary ceremony included members of SFD, SPD and Bulloch County EMS.
Statesboro Deputy Fire Chief Bobby Duggar served as the master of ceremony. They began with a procesional of the SPD and SFD honor guard. Then the lowering of the flags to half staff.
He then introduced Statesboro Fire Department Administrative Assistant Kathleen O’ Conner, who was living on Long Island the day of the attack gave brief remarks about the 9/11 attacks.
Thousands who survived impacted
She lost a 30 year old family member who was working in the World Trade Towers on 9/11 and two of her brothers responded to the fires as NYFD firefighters. 118,000 have reported World Trade Center illnesses, including her two brothers.
There are still 1,106 victims whose remains have not been recovered. 4,621 surviving public safety personnel who responded and assisted at the scene have died from cancers and other 9/11 related illnesses.
"Those are staggering statistics and yet a whole generation knows little to nothing about that day," said O'Conner. "Only 16 states in our county require even a mention of 9/11. Yes, a mention and not that it taught as part of their curriculum."
Statesboro Fire Department Lieutenant Caleb New played and sang a beautiful rendition of Lee Greenwood's, "God Bless the U.S.A."
"I truly believe that if we as a people come back to that day and remember those things that we were taught on how to be a society, what God was trying to show us through the tragedies, we would be in a whole different place as a country," said Deputy Chief Duggar. "So as we move on I ask that each one of us under the sound of my voice would start remembering what that day meant and how we can move forward and keep that feeling alive in this country, because we need it now more than ever."
Cindy Hulsey with Bulloch Memorial Gardens and Joiner Anderson Funeral Home and Crematory provided refreshments after the ceremony.
Grice Connect live streamed the service. You can CLICK HERE to watch the memorial service in entirety.
