It’s been 25 years since the unfathomable terrorist attacks on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. That seemingly innocuous beautiful, bright, blue-sky late-summer morning forever changed the lives of thousands of Americans and that of the country. Many Long Islanders lost their lives that day, and a multitude of our first responders sped west to answer the call of duty in the face of grave danger. It is, we believe, impossible to forget if you were alive to witness the horrors of the day, but also the beauty of strangers helping strangers and communities bonding to help, soothe and mourn together. Which is, perhaps, the thing we’re more in danger of forgetting but a day like this is a very good one to remind yourself that we’re all human beings and to honor those who are no longer with us.
Amagansett
A memorial service is being held for all who would like to attend by the East Hampton Town Fire Chiefs Association and the American Legion Post 419 on Friday, Sept. 11 at 6 p.m. (after the typical workday hours, so everyone who wants to be there, can) at 15 Montauk Highway.
East Quogue
At 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 11, the East Quogue Fire Department chiefs, officers and firefighter members will hold a memorial service to remember the events and lives lost on 9/11 at the East Quogue Fire Department Memorial Site at the corner of Montauk Highway and Bay Ave.
Flanders
Flanders Fire Department will hold its annual memorial service at 6 p.m. Sept. 11 at Fireman’s Memorial Park on Flanders Road and Fanning Road. The park’s World Trade Center memorial incorporates two pieces of steel from the fallen towers.
Riverhead
On Monday, Sept. 14, Riverhead Free Library will host “Remembering 9/11: Responder Stories Onscreen and In-Person”from 2 to 4 p.m. The program will combine recorded testimony from the Stony Brook World Trade Center Oral History Project with an in-person question-and-answer session featuring a Long Island responder.
Sag Harbor
The Old Whalers’ Church will hold its 25 Years of Remembrance 9/11 session for quiet individual prayer on Friday, Sept. 1l from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. All are welcome.
Shelter Island
The Shelter Island Center Firehouse will have a Community Ceremony of Remembrance on Friday, Sept. 11, at 6 p.m. for art 49 N. Ferry Road.
Southampton
Southampton Town Department of Public Safety places 343 mini American flags annually in front of the lawn of the Southampton Town Hall to honor the number of firefighters lost in attack. On Friday morning at 8:15 a.m., the Southampton Fire Department is holding a memorial service, sounding a siren at 8:46, 9:03 when Mayor Bill Manger and Chief Polis Walker will also speak, 9:47, 9:59, 10:03 and 10:28 a.m. respectively to note the key moments of attacks and tower collapses.
Also, keep your ears tuned to the sound of sirens as fire departments across the East End will be sounding their horns and sirens between 8:46 a.m. and 10:28 a.m., marking the exact moments when the Twin Towers were each struck and fell, when the Pentagon was struck and the time that Flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, Penn.
