A Flag Raising was conducted September 11th. 2009
 at the Historic Seligman Sundries. The featured speaker was a Seligman resident, Lynn Searles.  Here is her story.


Remembering 9/11

My name is Lynn Searles and I'm from Connecticut, one hour outside of New York.  As we stand here on the 8th anniversary of 9/11, the first plane has already hit the first tower.  I witnessed 9/11 first hand.  My sister, Violet, was due to go into New York that day, but my brother-in-law, Frank, had a change of plans, diverting their trip.  God was looking after them.  I was due to make my yearly trip to New York right after Thanksgiving for a conference at the Hilton, Christmas shopping, and dinner at The Window of the World.  This five-star restaurant was in one of the towers.  From its windows you could see the city, Statue of Liberty, and all the boats in the New York Harbor lit up for the holidays.  I would never make this trip again.

My girlfriend lost her daughter, Candace, in the peak of her life going to California on a training program through her college-to-be.  She had everything to live for on her journey of the rest of her life, excited to learn, to give back; cut short, she was in the first plane to hit the tower.  At 18, her life was over.  Second Connecticut Firefighters were called that morning.  One of my good friends, Steve, left his wife and two young sons to assist in this tragedy.  This was his calling, his life, he saved lives, but no one could save his, he died in the tower collapse, doing his job.  He is my Hero.

No one could fathom what you saw on TV was not nearly what you saw at Ground Zero.  I was a Red Cross Volunteer, American Heart Association Volunteer, Hospice Volunteer, and Bereavement Counselor.  I was picked to run a relief van from Connecticut to New York for the recovery workers.  My first day, I shook all the way back to Connecticut.  I went to the local bar.  There weren't enough shots to cure me.  Oh, yes, I stopped shaking, but the pictures of the recovery were still there when I was awake and when I was asleep.

After three years of counseling, many people still had home-made memorials in their living rooms.  They still had no closure, no body to bury.  At the memorial for my girlfriend's daughter, the casket had only a few personal effects, no body of Candice Williams, but the living room memorial was gone.  My job was done.  My priest said it was my time for counseling.

Patriotism came together on that day 9/11.  New beginnings for the United States.  An understanding that everyone, no matter what your background was, you were a citizen of the U.S.A., Home of the Brave.

I came to Seligman three years ago.   In Seligman was the first time I felt the same Patriotism.  A melting pot of people, not unlike New York.  Whether you need a smile, a hug, or just a hello.  So to the people of Seligman and the rest of the world... Rock on, Love this Country and GOD BLESS!!!!



“Tunnel to Towers” Run
As reported September 29th, 2009 by The New York Post

 http://www.tunneltotowersrun.org/

Red, white and blue reigned supreme amid a torrent of rain as more than 25,000 soaked patriots joined Brooklyn’s Bravest and runners from around the world for the eighth annual “Tunnel to Towers” run, poignantly retracing the footsteps of a valiant Park Slope firefighter who made the ultimate sacrifice on 9/11.

Waving American flags and toting memorial banners, the flood of supporters sloshed across the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel on a 3.1-mile course to Ground Zero in memory of those who perished in the World Trade Center terror disaster, and to commemorate the grim journey of Squad Company 1 Firefighter Stephen Siller, who had been off-duty on September 11, 2001 and planning a day of golf with his brothers when hijackers attacked the Twin Towers. Firefighter Siller, a 34-year-old husband and father, raced through the tunnel to assist with the rescue operation, paying for his selflessness with his life. He was one of 10 members from the elite disaster unit at 788 Union Street to perish in the catastrophe.

“I’m so moved, in this weather they all came out,” Siller’s sister Mary Scullin told the press. The Tunnel to Towers run was established by the Siller family to benefit the Siller Family Foundation and several other charities, including those serving families of 9/11 victims.

A tribute to the innocent victims and the heroes of 9/11

September 11, 2001 is a day that will be remembered around the world; the day we witnessed the slaughter of thousands of innocent American civilians.  We watched horrified as live television showed hundreds of fireman and police officers give their lives trying to save others. 

 

We stared dumfounded at our TVs as appalling scenes of airplanes used as missiles destroyed the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York, slammed into the Pentagon in Washington DC, and crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. America was being attacked by a unknown enemy.  All we could do was watch...

 

As Americans, all of us shared in the sorrow of this hideous massacre of innocent people.  In one way or another, this tragedy affected all civilized people from every country. 

contributed by:  http://www.theflagpole.com/index.html





On the direction of the President, the flag of the United States of America should be displayed on the homes of Americans, the White House and all United States government buildings in the whole world. The flag should be flown at half-mast as a mark of respect to those who died on September 11, 2001. Many people observe a moment of silence at 8:46 AM (Eastern Daylight Time). This marks the time that the first plane flew into the World Trade Center. Some communities, particularly in the areas directly affected by the attacks, hold special church services or prayer meetings. People who personally experienced the events in 2001 or lost loved ones in them, may lay flowers or visit memorials