Ceremony to mark 12th anniversary of Sept. 11 attacks

Twelve years ago our country changed forever when the Twin Towers fell. Today a piece of the towers stands in Alabama, and Vestavia Hills is helping dedicate it as a part of its annual Patriot Day ceremony. 

“Sept. 11 was declared Patriot Day to recognize the sacrifices of not just the public safety officers but also ordinary citizens who stepped up in the face of terror and fought back that day,” Vestavia Hills Fire Chief Jim St. John said. “It’s a great honor to be able to pause and recognize those people.”

This year’s event, held jointly by the Cities of Vestavia Hills, Homewood and Mountain Brook will center around a 1,305-pound H-beam from the World Trade Center.

The vertically erected beam now acts as a memorial in front of Mountain Brook’s new Municipal Complex, which opened this spring.

“It’s almost like having a piece of the USS Arizona after Pearl Harbor,” Mountain Brook Fire Chief Robert Ezekiel said. “It had a similar impact on our country, and people will pause and reflect on what they were doing that day. And that’s what it’s all about. We don’t want to forget.”

Vestavia Hills Mayor Butch Zaragoza will join Mountain Brook Mayor Terry Oden and Homewood Mayor Scott McBrayer to host the ceremony in Mountain Brook’s Crestline Village on Sept. 11.

Allan Rice, executive director of the Alabama Fire College, will be the keynote speaker for the ceremony, which begins at 8:30 a.m. and will last about 45 minutes.

Abrielle Mullins, a rising country singer, will sing the national anthem, and Jacqueline Barnwell will sing “America the Beautiful.”

In addition to dedicating the monument, the program will also recognize city employees who have served in military.

A laying of the wreath and a bell ceremony will be part of the lineup.

The ceremony will take place next to the memorial at the intersection of Hoyt Lane and Oak Street by the library and fire department in Crestline Village.

“I think [the ceremony] will cause people to pause and will be meaningful to people who are part of the ceremony and those who attend,” Ezekiel said.