The Great Smoky Mountain Journal
Staff Reports
Posted: Sunday, January 21, 2018 03:51 PM
Millions Of Americans Remember 3,000 Lives Lost 16 Years Ago On 09-11
Hijackers flew commercial airplanes into New York's World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania on September 11, 2001.
The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation is set to host a Memorial Stair Climb at the Sunsphere. Each participant will pay tribute to a New York first responder by climbing the equivalent of the 110 stories of the World Trade Center.
The event is open to anyone qualified as a first responder. Onsite registration starts at 7 a.m. at the Knoxville Sunsphere on 810 Clinch Avenue. The climb begins at 8:30 a.m. and is set to end at noon.
Hundreds of bikers hit the road Sunday in honor of the nearly 3,000 lives lost. A ceremony took place at World's Fair Park in the morning and the bikers followed along the remembrance ride route. The journey ended at the Bootlegger's Harley Davidson on Lovell Road. Each biker paid a $20 entry fee which went to Blount County Rescue, Seymour Fire Department, and Fallen Officer groups in East Tennessee.
A group of UT Knoxville students also decided to pay tribute to the victims of 9/11 on Sunday. Several students gathered near the Humanities building to plant American flags in their honor. The group wanted to show the importance of that day to students who may not even remember it.
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump will preside over his first 9/11 commemoration in his office on Monday