Sep 11 2020
WCHS
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS/WVAH) — Ceremonies in several communities in the region Friday marked a solemn occasion – the 19-year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
At Yeager Airport in Kanawha County, a ceremony was timed with the collapse of one of the Twin Towers at the World Trade Center and focused on first responders.
U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., was the keynote speaker at the event forced outdoors by COVID-19. She and other speakers noted how the country came together after some 3,000 people lost their lives in terrorist attacks. Among the dead at the World Trade Center were 343 New York firefighters.
Charleston Mayor Amy Goodwin still has difficulty talking about the day with her 19-year-old son.
Other speakers included the local Transportation Security Administration chief and Kanawha County Sheriff Mike Rutherford.
Meanwhile, a memorial ceremony also was held at the Donel C. Kinnard Memorial State Veterans Cemetery in Institute.
U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., paid his respects along with Medal of Honor recipient Hershel “Woody” Williams at the veterans’ cemetery.
A socially distanced crowd of veterans and community members attended the memorial ceremony in honor of 9/11 victims and other fallen heroes. They laid a wreath at the cemetery's Gold Star memorial.
Manchin said the 9/11 anniversary is a date that every American - young and old - should always remember.
“For those that are too young or those that were not born it is a day that they should never forget either because we were attacked on our soil in the United States of America close to 3,000 lost their lives and it is something we thought could never happen.
A Gold Star mother also spoke during the ceremony about the importance of future generations remembering our heroes.
Meanwhile, in Putnam County, the American Legion James E. Marshall Post 187 in Winfield held its annual 9/11 memorial ceremony on the front steps of the Putnam County Courthouse.