New Berlin Public Safety Open House Marks 20 Years Since 9/11

NEW BERLIN, WI — As we approach the 20th anniversary of 9/11, Americans who are old enough will remember exactly where they were that day.

The country felt a collective trauma as one and then two planes flew into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001. As the truth dawned on people watching from their TVs that America was under attack, another plane took aim at the Pentagon. A fourth was brought down in a field in Pennsylvania in a final act of heroism by passengers who realized their flight had been hijacked.

Nearly 3,000 Americans, including 10 from Wisconsin, were killed in the suicide attacks carried out by 19 militants associated with the Islamic extremist group al-Qaida.

Those that remember may have vivid images and memories of that day.

Others, especially those born into a post-9/11 world, do not remember first-hand the events that changed the course of their own America.

A generation of Americans relies on the stories, ceremonies and mourning from their parents, teachers and communities to understand what 9/11 is.

In New Berlin, an event planned for Saturday will in part honor those fallen from 9/11.

The Public Safety Open House will feature much more than just a memorial service, but for those looking for a family-friendly remembrance event, the Open House may provide.

The ceremony will start at 8:30 a.m. Saturday at the Public Safety Grounds, 16300 National Avenue in New Berlin. After the ceremony, a pancake breakfast, soda, lemonade, coffee and more will be available.

The Fire Department and other first responders will then show off their equipment during a show and tell. Inflatables, music, rock climbing and other family-friendly events will be featured at the show, according to a news release.

At the 9/11 memorial in Lower Manhattan, New York — an area known for years after the attacks as "Ground Zero" — the names of the fallen will be read aloud.

"Throughout the ceremony, we will observe six moments of silence, acknowledging when each of the World Trade Center towers was struck and fell and the times corresponding to the attack on the Pentagon and the crash of Flight 93," the 9/11 Memorial & Museum wrote on its website.

The annual "Tribute of Light," which are lights pointed to the sky in the shape of the Twin Towers, will go on that night.

Related:

Remembering 9/11 Victims From Wisconsin 20 Years Later