University Park residents gathered for a small ceremony in front of the University Park Fire Department Friday morning to honor those who lost their lives in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Held for the third year in a row, the commemoration opened with a flag ceremony performed by the fire department’s Honor Guard as well as a featured performance by the Color Guard.
UP Fire Chief Randy Howell, who began the annual tradition when he came to the UP Fire Department in 2008, spoke at the event along with Texas House Rep. Dan Branch and Rev. Nelson Bell.
“[The ceremony] is an effort to remember not just the fallen firefighters and police officers and medical workers who died that day, but also everyone who lost their life,” Howell said.
Bell praised the actions of those who first arrived at the scene of the attacks. He believes that God was never far from those who suffered that day.
“[The victims] saw God in the eyes of the first responders,” he said. “They are our war.”
Honor Guard Commander and Firefighter/Paramedic Joe Watkins took part in the flag ceremony.
A college student at the time of the attacks, Watkins understands and respects just how dangerous the nature of their job really is.
“We’re always running in while everyone [else is] running out. And those guys in the twin towers, the last thing that ever crossed their minds was that those towers were coming down,” Watkins said. “You’re doing your job. That’s when people call us. When they’re in their worst