Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2024, marked the 23rd anniversary of 9/11, 2001 attacks, killing nearly 3,000 people.  Once again, the Great Falls community paused and came together, this year 160 strong. They grieved the loss  and the sacrifice of the  59 crew, men, women and children who died during the 9/11 terrorist attack aboard the hijacked American Airlines flight 77 from Washington to Los Angeles when it  crashed into the Pentagon. Those from Great Falls are Richard Peter Gabriel Sr.; George W. Simmons and his wife, Diane M. Simmons; Ann Judge, Barbara Olson; and Lisa J. Raines. 

During his remarks, keynote speaker Vice Admiral Lewis W. Crenshaw Jr. (ret.) asked those gathered to “indulge him” while he read Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem "A Psalm of Life.” It encapsulated the qualities of heroes and explains why communities such as Great Falls continue to come together: “Our heroes left the footprints in the sand for us to follow. We honor and remember them when we do.”

“We must seize upon their example and be ready when our time comes to be heroic,” Crehshaw said.  The interesting thing about being a hero, according to Crenshaw, is that “you have no say over the time, place, or circumstances that bring out the hero in you. And in most cases, you don't even realize that you have become a hero.” Crenshaw outlined four steps: putting others first, being prepared, taking action through volunteering, and turning into trouble when a problem arises.

For Crenshaw, Sept. 11, 2001, his day stationed at the Pentagon began like any other except, when, at 8:50, staff told him an airplane had apparently “run into the World Trade Center in New York.” Crenshaw said he left his office near the heliport to watch television. When he saw the first of the Twin Towers burning, it didn't occur to him that it was a terrorist attack. When the second plane, United Airlines flight 175, hit, Crenshaw said, and he knew. Shortly after, Flight 77 plowed into the southwest side of the Pentagon. Crenshaw recounted how he and others dashed out of the Pentagon through overwhelming smoke.

Crenshaw said he was one of the lucky ones; 125 of his colleagues, all heroes, were not so lucky. Crenshaw said he has a personal memory of a young presidential management intern from Syracuse University, married for not quite five years, who was killed in the Navy Command Center on 9/11. “Brady worked for me and was just transferred the day before from my office to the Navy Command Center.”

Twenty-three years later, Crenshaw and others gathered in Great Falls to honor the sacrifice of the 59 men, women, and children on Flight 77, as well as for all others that day who perished in the attacks. A bell tolled six times, and after each, a candle lit for one of  the six Great Falls residents who perished aboard Flt. 77.

To read Crenshaw’s full remarks, visit https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IoYqZBBieWhFMhvjXN73ZBBxXCC0c06JVrhzO_AU--8/edit