Berkshires Remember First Responders, Military Personnel Lost at 9/11 and Aftermath
North Adams Mayor Jennifer Macksey, with Fire Chief Brent Lefebvre speaks at Friday's memorial.
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The county's two cities held memorials on Friday morning to mark the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.
Great Barrington was scheduled to hold a dedication of piece of steel from the World Trade Center at 6 p.m.
North Adams held its ceremony in the fire station's side garden starting at exactly 8:46 a.m., the time Flight 11 crashed into the World Trade Center's North Tower.
The small square of grass was packed with police officers, firefighters, wire and alarm personnel, dispatchers, and Northern Berkshire EMS employees, and city employees, officials and community members.
After the ceremonial tolling of the bell, an honor guard presented the colors.
Mayor Jennifer Macksey said it felt odd welcoming people to a very solemn event.
"What happened 25 years ago put a mark on emergency services. It put additional pressure on police, fire, EMS, and dispatchers," Macksey said. "While we remember those who lost their lives during 9/11, and those who ran to help as many as they could during 9/11, we have to pause and appreciate those who continue to serve despite that awful threat that occurred 25 years ago."
She said it was a direct attack on the United States and all of its people.
"It was a question of our freedoms and our ability to be safe in our communities," the mayor said. "I can say today that here in North Adams, it could happen to us, but I know with the professionalism of our Fire Department, Police Department, EMS, and our dispatch team, we are a better community; we are a safer community than we were 25 years ago."
Before asking attendees to bow their heads in a moment of silence, she thanked all of those who continue to serve and protect the city, adding that every day they make a sacrifice. She said city first responders never know what they are going to walk into when they go to work, and she expressed her deep appreciation for all emergency service staff.
"Remember that we are stronger and safer when we stay together, work together, and are united," Macksey said.
Fire Chief Brent Lefebvre then read the Firefighter's Prayer. He was followed by Police Chief Mark Bailey, who read the Police Officer's Prayer. Northern Berkshire EMS Manager John Meaney read the EMS Prayer, and dispatcher Mary Ann King read the Dispatcher's Prayer before closing the ceremony.
All first responders were invited to a noon picnic at the fire station cooked by the Rev. Dave Anderson of First Baptist Church.
Around 100 people gathered at Veterans' Memorial Park in Pittsfield at 10 a.m. The city's annual ceremony commenced beside the Iraq/Afghanistan War Memorial, dedicated in 2020, which remembers the five Berkshire County residents killed in action following the attack and those who have served.
"This long overdue monument is not only to honor those from Berkshire County that gave it all, but to all other veterans that served during these conflicts, and to those still serving," said Arnold Perras, Army veteran and commander of VFW Post 448.
"It is events like this that we will keep alive and never let us forget their sacrifices."
Retired Army Sgt. Mark Pompi speaks at the Iraq/Afghanistan War Memorial on Friday morning.
A total of 2,753 were killed in the crashes and the subsequent collapse of the World Trade Center. Total casualties that day were 2,977, not including the 19 hijackers.
Most were civilians, but 344 New York firefighters and 71 law enforcement officers were killed at the Twin Towers; 55 military personnel were killed at the Pentagon, and a U.S. Fish & Wildlife officer who was on the fourth plane, United Flight 93, when it came down.
Pittsfield's Iraq/Afghanistan War Memorial at 295 South Street honors the five soldiers from Berkshire County who died serving in Iraq and Afghanistan: Sgt. Glenn R. Allison, Spc. Michael R. DeMarsico II, Spc. Michael R. Daehling, Sgt. 1st Class Daniel H. Petithory, and Chief Warrant Officer Stephen M. Wells.
It was completed on time and within budget in 2020, has a $5,000 perpetual maintenance fund, and a 100-year time capsule beneath.
Mayor Peter Marchetti said people began their day 25 years ago with typical morning routines not knowing what was ahead, and "9/11 is one of those days that we remember exactly where we were when the first plane hit the World Trade Center in New York City."
He pointed out that, in the days, weeks, and months that followed, hundreds of people volunteered to help with rescue and recovery efforts, including several units from Pittsfield and other Berkshire County communities.
Guest speaker Mark Pompi, retired Army sergeant, first class, and an Iraq/Afghanistan veteran, said the decade following was like being on a hamster wheel for service members and their families.
"We were getting ready to deploy. Then we would deploy. We do our missions. We'd come home, and we'd get ready to deploy again. Constant, constant training, constant deployments, constant time away from our families. It was a tough time," he said.
"I know I only had two post-9/11 deployments, and I know many people, including some of the people here, have had many more, some of them in the dozens."
There were people lost, injured in training, injured overseas, killed, and wounded in action. Pompi said it was difficult being away from family, but soldiers had each other to lean on.
Keynote speaker John Driscoll, a retired Army brigadier general, started Sept. 11, 2001, with hope because he was being promoted to major. This came with thoughts about how he would step into the new rank and make it better.
"Little did I know, as we heard today, that America's chapter of the post-Cold War was closed. In fact, it was slammed shut that day by the attacks at the World Trade Center," he said.
Driscoll later said tragedy and war are humanity's great equalizers, reminding us to care for each other in times of strife.
"But what came out of that tragic day is a new appreciation of liberty. That freedom is not free, nor is it a guarantee," he added.
"The example of seeing charity towards your neighbor, exhibiting empathy to know to exhibiting empathy to know that others are out there working to keep America strong and safe. For the price of liberty is eternal vigilance."
The ceremony's posting of colors was done by the Pittsfield Fire Department, the national anthem was sung by retired Marine Curtis Janey; Army veteran Henry Morris laid the wreath; retired Air Force B52 pilot and American Legion Post 68 Cmdr. Lenwood "Lenny" Vaspra read the names of those killed in action and sounded a bell; Dalton American Legion Post 155 did the rifle salute; VFW Post 448 member Joseph Difilippo performed the taps, and Air Force member Carmen Ostrander gave the invocation and benediction.
Tags: 9/11, anniversary, memorial,
