UTC faculty, staff, students, alumni, military-connected families and community members attended the 9/11: A Day of Remembrance in the University Center Auditorium to honor those killed on the 25th anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks. Photo by Angela Foster.
For many men and women across the country, the 9/11 terrorist attacks were not only a day of tragedy but also a day of answering the nation’s call to service.
On Friday, Sept. 11, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga hosted 9/11: A Day of Remembrance in the University Center Auditorium to honor those killed on the 25th anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks.
The program recognized the courage, service and sacrifice of military members, first responders and their families over the past 25 years.
Andrew Smith, a U.S. Army veteran who served with the 82nd Airborne Division and co-founder of the Honoring the Sacrifice Foundation, delivered the keynote address.
He recalled sitting in his ninth-grade math class at Chattanooga Christian School when the attacks occurred and knowing in that moment that he would join the military.
“I knew immediately after that day,” Smith said. “Even in that class, I started to get a sense that this is now my generation’s turn to answer the call. Right around that same time, the summer before 9/11, I was in Michigan hanging out with my grandfather, who served in World War II, and he started telling me stories.
“I remember him telling me that after Pearl Harbor, in his hometown, there were lines out the door and around the block at the recruiting stations of people just eager to join and do their part after their country had been attacked. And so with those conversations in the background, 9/11 happened.”
After graduating from Lee University, Smith deployed to Kandahar, Afghanistan, as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. On March 8, 2012, he stepped on an improvised explosive device while on patrol, losing both legs and sustaining severe internal injuries from shrapnel.
Smith urged the audience to remember the spirit that emerged from that tragic day in 2001, “a spirit of service, courage, sacrifice and love.
“Love that compels someone to put themselves willingly between danger and everything they care about,” he said. “So today that’s what we’re doing here. We’re honoring, we’re remembering, we’re carrying that American spirit forward for the next generation so that we never forget and live worthy of the sacrifices that were made all these years.”
Andrew Smith was the Keynote Speaker at the 9/11: A Day of Remembrance.
The program began with remarks and introductions from Sally T. Worland, chair of the 9/11: A Day of Remembrance planning committee.
Chancellor Lori Bruce welcomed UTC faculty, staff, students, alumni, military-connected families and community members in attendance and emphasized the importance of remembering 9/11.
“We remember the first responders who ran toward danger when others were trying to get to safety,” Bruce said. “We remember the members of our military who answered the call to serve in the days and years that followed. We remember their families whose sacrifices are all too often unseen. And above all, we remember those whose lives were lost.
“UTC has a responsibility to be a place where our community can come together, not only to learn, but to honor and to remember—and today is one of those moments.”
Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly offered remarks recalling what that day was like for him and his family. Hamilton County Mayor Weston Wamp and Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee shared video messages.
Other participants included Maj. Gen. Bill Raines, U.S. Army, retired; UTC alumnus Maj. Gen. Mark McDonald, U.S. Army, retired; Dr. June Scobee Rodgers, founding chair of the Challenger Center; Capt. Craig T. Worland, U.S. Marine Corps, retired; and Scenic City Women’s Network Executive Director Renee Nail.
The UTC ROTC Color Guard presented the colors and led the Pledge of Allegiance. Jack Lyons, a sixth-grade student at Loftis Middle School, performed “The Star-Spangled Banner,” and the Baylor School Choir, directed by Vic Parks, performed “You Raise Me Up,” “America the Beautiful” and “God Bless America.”
Bruce emphasized the event’s importance for UTC students who may not remember the attacks or were not alive at the time.
“Remembrance is not simply about looking back,” she said. “It’s about ensuring that the lessons, the courage, the sacrifice and the spirit of service that emerged from that day are carried forward by the generations that follow.”
Photo gallery by Angela Foster
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