Brookline High School Didn't Hold 9/11 Moment Of Silence

BROOKLINE, MA — For the first time in 18 years, Brookline High School did not hold a moment of silence to mark the memorial of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Although headmaster Anthony Meyer said there was much discussion among faculty about when might be a good time to move from marking the day with a moment of silence, to handing it off to teachers to bring up in classrooms, it came as a surprise for many Brookline High School students.

Although most were not even yet born when the attacks happened in 2001, some said they went the whole day with no mention of the victims or heroes of the day and threatened to walk out of school Monday in protest.

But before they could, Meyer told students and families in a letter home that he regretted the decision and planned to bring the moment of silence back next year.

"For the last couple of school years, many high school faculty, staff, and administration members have discussed when it makes sense to shift from a school-wide PA announcement about 9/11 to more classroom-based discussions. As head of school, I try to use the PA conservatively, knowing that such announcements interrupt learning and teaching and that they are sometimes less impactful than more direct work between teachers and students," he wrote in the letter.

Meyer reiterated the school was committed to honoring the victims of the terrorist attack that sent two planes into the World Trade Center Towers, the Pentagon and Flight 93 and all of the first responders who risked and lost lives on Sept. 11, 2001.

"I understand that by not having a school-wide address and moment of silence, I unintentionally called our commitment into question. For this I apologize to all members of our BHS community.

This came even as New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed legislation requiring all public schools to hold a moment of silence every year on September 11 — making remembrance the law. Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker did not respond to request for comment on plans for the commonwealth.

Brookline remembers:

Each year as police and fire departments across the country remember the thousands who died as a result of terrorist attacks, the commonwealth remembered the 206 connected to Massachusetts who lost their lives as a result, too. In Brookline, the fire houses have a moment of silence to recognize those with connections to town. There were at least eight:

Christine Barbuto, was 32 when she died aboard one of the planes. Her obituary noted the Brookline resident had achieved her goal to become a TJX Co. ladies sportswear buyer and was on a business trip to California with co-workers when they crashed into the Trade Center aboard Flight 11. She was survived by her father and two sisters.

Kelly Anne Booms, 24, was working for PriceWaterhouse in Boston and living in Brookline. She was a certified public accountant. On Sept. 11, she boarded American Airlines Flight 11 for California, where she had been sent on temporary assignment. She was a graduate of Miami University in Ohio with a double major in accounting and finance, according to the 9/11 living memorial.

John Brett Cahill, 56, was born in Brookline. He lived with his wife, Sharon, and two sons, Brett, 17, and Sean, 15, in Wellesley and worked as a vice president of the systems group at Xerox. He planned to retire at the end of the year to start his own business. He was on Flight 175 to Los Angeles, where he was going to visit a friend and do some work on the new business. There's a bench on Davis Avenue to remember him. He attended St. Mary's grammar school in Brookline and graduated from Catholic Memorial High School in West Roxbury in 1962. He went on to get his undergraduate at BC, according to his obituary.

Manuel Del Valle Jr, a 1988 graduate of Brookline High School and a New York City Firefighter, Manuel Del Valle Jr. Manny was assigned to Engine 5 on September 11, 2001 and was one of the first fire companies to respond to the World Trade Center. A bench was dedicated in Manny's memory on the front lawn of Station 5 in Coolidge Corner in 2011, Patch reported.

Gerard P. Dewan, 35, was a West Roxbury native, but his brother served for decades on the Brookline Fire Department. Dewan was a third generation firefighter and one of the first responders on Sept. 11, according to the Herald.

Karleton Fyfe was a 31-year-old John Hancock employee and father of 1-year-old Jackson. Fyfe's mother called his Brookline home on that Tuesday morning,according to his obituary. She had seen the news of burning buildings and wanted to make sure her only son was not inside his 56th floor office in Boston. He wasn't, Fyfe's wife, Haven, assured her mother-in-law. He was on an airplane on a business trip. It was American Airlines 11.

Lisa Gordenstein, 41, was living in Needham. She was the assistant vice president and merchandise manager of the TJX companies. Gordenstein was a native of Dedham, but graduated from Brookline High School in 1977. She received a degree in merchandising from Syracuse University in 1981. Gordenstein was on American Airlines Flight 11 on her way to California to open a store, her obituary said.

Daniel C. Lewin, 31, lived in Brookline. He was the co-founder of Akamai Technologies, and died aboard American Airlines flight 11.

MA Victims Remembered On 9/11 Anniversary

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna).