Triangle remembers 15th anniversary of 9/11 through events, service projects

Friday, Sept. 9

▪ Activate Good is coordinating the 9/11 Weekend of Service, a chance to honor those lost on 9/11 through volunteer service. The weekend will include service projects from Friday through Sunday. To find a project that needs volunteers, go to http://activategood.org/911weekend2016.

▪ Wake Tech’s Public Safety Education Campus, 321 Chapanoke Road in Raleigh, will hold a ceremony at 9 a.m. that will include a candle lighting at the Memorial Wall, the placing of a wreath at the campus flagpole and the release of doves. Local first responders will be recognized, and a Wake Tech employee who was working in New York City at the time of the attacks will share his story. The Northern Wake Campus on Louisburg Road will hold a tribute at the flagpole at 11 a.m. that will include the playing of TAPS, a flag lowering and patriotic giveaways.

Saturday, Sept. 10

▪ Blind author Michael Hingson, whose book “Thunder Dog” recounts how he and his guide dog escaped down 78 flights of stairs in Tower One of the World Trade Center during the Sept. 11 attacks, will speak at West Regional Library, 4000 Louis Stephens Drive, Cary. At 1:30 p.m., he will talk about “Labrador Lessons from a Canine Hero.” At 4 p.m. he will talk about “Turning the Tales on Terrorism: Lessons from the Twin Towers.” Both programs are free, but registration is required at wakegov.com/libraries or by calling 919-463-8500.

▪ The Tunnel to Towers 5K run and walk, honoring first-responders and those who died on 9/11, will begin at 5:30 p.m. at Research Triangle Park: The Frontier, 800 Park Offices Dr. in Durham. New York City firefighter Stephen Siller died after strapping on gear and running through the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel to the Twin Towers. The event is a fundraiser for Building for America’s Bravest program. Register at bit.ly/2aMcp7l.

Sunday, Sept. 11

▪ 9/11 Remembrance 5K Run/Walk. Morrisville Fire Rescue Station 1, 200 Town Hall Drive. Sponsored by Town of Morrisville fire/rescue and police departments. A bell-ringing ceremony and moment of silence will be held after the 5K. Free. Registration starts at 7 a.m. Race is at 8:46 a.m. bit.ly/2bDo8Gu

▪ Fuquay-Varina will have a remembrance event and day of service at 8:30 a.m. Sept. 11, at Fire Station #1, 301 S. Fuquay Ave. A Fuquay-Varina police officer, who served with the New York Police Department on 9/11, will join other first-responders in giving remarks. A service project will follow.

▪ A wreath-laying ceremony in honor of 9/11 victims will begin at 8:45 a.m. at the War on Terror Memorial in Veterans Park, 600 Bikram Dr. in Holly Springs. The ceremony is being held by the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association North Carolina Chapter 15-6 and American Gold Star Mothers, Gardenia Chapter. bit.ly/2aV38qK.

▪ Military Missions in Action will host a Day of Service at J. Ashley Wall Towne Square at the corner of Cypress and Third streets in Wendell from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be games, music, raffles and food trucks. Money raised from the event will support Military Missions in Action, a non-profit organization that provides services to veterans.

▪ Participants will commemorate the 15th anniversary of 9/11 starting at 1 p.m. at Red Hat Amphitheater, 500 S. McDowell St., Raleigh. Volunteers will take part in service projects at stations throughout the amphitheater, and local leaders will speak. The free event, which will feature live music, will conclude Activate Good’s 9/11 Weekend of Service. Participants are asked to bring a nonperishable food item for Urban Ministries of Wake County. To RSVP, go to 911commemoration2016.eventbrite.com/.

▪ David Arcus performs an organ recital, “Music of Homage and Remembrance,” at 3 p.m. at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, 210 St. Marys Road in Hillsborough. A reception follows the concert.

▪ The Respect for America quilt will be rededicated during a ceremony at 3 p.m. at the Holly Springs Law Enforcement Center, 750 Holly Springs Road. The 1,000-square, 12-by-6-foot quilt was crafted by students and teachers at Holly Springs Elementary and volunteers from the Holly Springs Women’s Club to help students cope after the terrorist attacks. It hung in the lobby of the school for nearly 15 years. bit.ly/2bx5prY.

▪ Historic Oakwood Cemetery will host a 9/11 Service of Remembrance & Appreciation at 4 p.m., at the cemetery’s Field of Honor near downtown Raleigh. Former Raleigh Mayor Smedes York will speak, and the Raleigh Police Department will present the colors. First-responders from around Wake County are invited.

▪ The American Red Cross is commemorating 9/11 Day by hosting blood drives at several locations in the Triangle. While there are drives in the days preceding 9/11, these will be on Sunday: The Greenway Club at Falls River, 1300 Falls River Ave., Raleigh, 12:30 to 5 p.m.; and Northside Community Church, 621 N. First Ave., Knightdale, 2 to 6:30 p.m. Go to redcrossblood.org or call 800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) for information or to make an appointment.

▪ Beginning 8:30 a.m. at Fire Station One, 325 W. Horne St., the Clayton Fire Department will continue its annual tradition of marking the timeline of the events of 9/11 with bell ringings, moments of silence and a lowering of the flag.

▪ WoodmenLife Chapter 543 of Selma will partner with the Town of Clayton for an In Honor and Remembrance ceremony at East Clayton Community Park, 1774 Glen Laurel Road, at 3 p.m. The ceremony will dedicate a new American flag and flagpole in the picnic pavilion area of the park.

This story was originally published September 8, 2016 at 4:45 PM with the headline "Triangle remembers 15th anniversary of 9/11 through events, service projects."