Du Quoin Remembers, Too: 9-11 memorial opens in New York City as we remember Pentagon victim Don Simmons
Thirteen years after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, some of it becomes a blur, but this year Du Quoin needs to remember that the attack hit home, too, as the new WTC memorial opens.
The attack on the Pentagon took the life of Du Quoin native Don Simmons, a great man. He is remembered at the memorial dedicated Sept. 11, 2008 at the Pentagon and his name will be read today during the service at the new memorial.
Don was born and raised in Du Quoin and served in the Army from 1964 to 1966. He met his wife, Peggy, while assigned to Ft. Myer and they were married in 1968. His innate honesty, love of God and generous spirit made him a friend to everyone. He was an avid fisherman, inventor and artist. He was very interested in Republican politics and was a true patriot.
Don enjoyed spur of the moment weekend excursions with his wife to different places, for example: county fairs, craft shows, the ocean, the mountains, and antiquing throughout Virginia and Maryland, often indulging Don's love of crab cakes and desserts. Before his untimely death, Don was looking forward to retirement and spending more time with his family and traveling with his wife so he could paint more of America's beautiful mountains and scenery.
He was a true example of everything a father and husband should be - devoted, compassionate, supportive and loving!
The Pentagon Memorial was dedicated on Sept. 11, 2008 in a ceremony attended by thousands. The Pentagon Memorial was the first national memorial dedicated to the tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001.
For the first time since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the national Sept. 11 Memorial & Museum in New York City will be open to victims' families and first responders after today's anniversary ceremony.
Also for the first time, the public will be allowed into the memorial after 6 p.m. On all the past anniversary days, the site has been shut down for the entire day.
The changes continue the gradual opening of the site, which is slowly coming to life after years of construction delays and cost overruns.
The year after the attack, mourners gathered in what was then called "Ground Zero," a scathing open wound that served as a stark reminder of the terrible events of that fateful day.
At the time, the 16-acre site was a wasteland surrounded by buildings still damaged from the terrorists' brutal handiwork.
Thirteen years later, One World Trade Center rises 1,776 feet in the air and is set to open this fall. Across the plaza, Four World Trade Center is scheduled to begin welcoming tenants in a few weeks.
The huge Transportation Hub with its spiky atrium is lumbering toward an anticipated mid-2015 opening.
Today, the ceremony will again feature the reading of the names of the 2,983 men, women and children who died at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon--including Don Simmons' name--and on Flight 93 in Pennsylvania during the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil.
After a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m. - the moment the first plane struck the North Tower - the reading will proceed, with a second pause at 9:03 a.m., the moment the second plane struck the South Tower.
There will be pauses at 9:37 a.m., when Flight 77 struck the Pentagon, at 9:59 a.m., when the South Tower fell, at 10:03 a.m., when Flight 93 crashed in Pennsylvania, and finally at 10:28 a.m., when the North Tower fell. The Memorial will remain closed while families and first responders get access to the Museum after the ceremony. The entire plaza will then reopen from 6 p.m. until midnight, offering a closeup view of the Tribute of Light display a few blocks away - sending two beams skyward as a ghostly reminder of the Twin Towers.