Team Buckley remembers 9/11

by Senior Airman Phillip Houk
460th Space Wing Public Affairs

9/11/2015 - BUCKLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- Team Buckley paid tribute to the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the U.S. during a Patriot Day 5K and a retreat ceremony Sept. 11 on Buckley Air Force Base, Colo.

Patriot Day is the national day of service and remembrance in memory of the 2,977 killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. On this day, the U.S. flag is flown at half-staff at the White House and all U.S. government buildings across the world. Americans are also asked to take a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m. Eastern Standard Time, the time the first plane crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City.

The Patriot Day events ended the afternoon of Sept. 11 with a Patriot Day 5K. Carrying the American Flag and a POW-MIA flag, service members ran, representing the strength and unity the nation has brought forth from the tragedies of September 11, 2001.

In the morning, Team Buckley gathered for a retreat ceremony to honor the victims, as well as those who selflessly gave their lives trying to help others during the attacks.

Speaking on the events of Sept. 11, 2001, Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Robert D Ward urged those in attendance to remember the reason for Patriot Day.

"For the most part we do not hunger for food and water, yet we thirst for peace and justice in the midst of a world filled with wars and rumors of war," Ward said. "We pray that the world will never forget the events of September 11th 2001 for if we do, we risk history repeating itself. So we stand here this day with resolve, we remember."

As a Team Buckley member who was personally affected by the attacks on Sept. 11, Senior Airman Matthew Greger, 2nd Space Warning Squadron, shared his experiences living in New York, and the family and friends he lost that day.

"I remember the morning of September 11th 2001 as mass hysteria, it felt like the world was ending. A black haze filled the sky for weeks when I found out that my cousin and our fire fighter friend had been confirmed casualties," Greger. "I remember September 11th because I need to explain the truths of that day to those I meet. I meet people here from all across the country and it is hard to believe that some of them don't understand this important day."

Col. John Wagner, 460th Space Wing commander, also acknowledged the warriors who volunteered to serve after Sept. 11, 2001.

"Though a usually divided and opinionated nation, e pluribus unum, from many one, we were united that day and that month in resolve to take action," Wagner said. "The lesson for all of us is that when our world again changes in an instant like it did in 2001, you must, and you will be ready to respond when our nation calls you to action."