9/11 Tribute held at City Council

By VERNON ROBISON

The Progress

A brief memorial service commemorating the 21st anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks was held at the beginning of the Mesquite City Council meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 13.

The tribute service was conducted by Mesquite resident Paul Benedict, the current President of the Exchange Club of Mesquite. The Exchange Club has been organizing the annual 9/11 Tribute ceremony in the Mesquite community for many years now.

Benedict began by acknowleding the large numbers of Mesquite Police officers and Fire and Rescue personnel in attendance at the meeting for the ceremony.

“The place is packed!” Benedict said. “Thank you all for joining us.”

Benedict recalled attending the very first 9/11 tribute ceremony which was held in 2002 in Mesquite Fire Station #1 behind City Hall. He noted that, from that very first event, the attendees were encouraged to “Never forget!”.

Since that time, a number of different speakers have given the tribute in the annual event.

“Each year we are reminded the same thing: that we must Never Forget,” Benedict said. “But today let us add the phrase “Never Stop Learning.” Because nearly one in five Americans today weren’t even born yet.”

Benedict said that these memorial events give an opportunity to learn about the many acts of heroism and generosity that took place on Sept. 11, 2001.

Benedict’s speech then listed out a number of such specific acts. These included stories of the bravery of firefighters in the two towers, civilian members of the public who stepped up and helped search through the rubble for survivors, the K9 units and their handlers that worked around the clock searching, the great boat lift where boat operators from all walks of life voluntarily stepped up to transport a half-million people off of the island of Manhattan so they could return home when all other modes of transportation were unavailable. These and many more, were acts of kindness and bravery which still are remembered today, Benedict said.

“People we have learned about in these tributes, and in many others to come, are heroes,” Benedict concluded.

A full transcript of Benedict’s speech will published on Page 4A of this week’s print edition.

Benedict concluded his speech by inviting Mesquite Police Chief MaQuade Chesley and Mesquite Fire Chief Jayson Andrus to come forward. On behalf of the Exchange Club, he expressed gratitude for their support and assistance in putting on Exchange Club events in the past.

As a token of that gratitude, Benedict presented checks for $500 each to the two departments.

As he presented to Andrus he noted that the funds could be used to purchase new blades for very specialized lifesaving saw equipment used by the Department. Benedict also remarked that a portion of the funding could be used to teach local school children during the upcoming National Fire Prevention month in October.

In presenting the check to Chief Chesley, Benedict suggested that the funds be used to help with expenses of this year’s Mesquite Night Out scheduled this week for Wednesday, Sept. 21.

To close the ceremony, a color guard made up of members of both Police and Fire Departments gave a solemn presentation of the colors for the audience.