Glendale Heights president wants residents to remember Sept. 11

When Glendale Heights village President Linda Jackson visited New York City not long after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, she was instantly struck by the remnants of the World Trade Center at ground zero. She could not believe such an attack had happened on U.S. soil.

When she returned home, she said she wanted to do what she could to make sure people would not forget.

On Saturday, Sept. 11, the village's Patriot Day ceremony at Veterans Memorial Park will commemorate the anniversary of the attacks with a silent parade, wreath-laying ceremony and PowerPoint presentation that will feature some of the images of the aftermath.

"I would have never imagined something like that happened in our country," Jackson said. "It's something we all have to remember. Maybe some people think it has gotten old. I don't."

On Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists hijacked four planes and intended to use them as weapons. One was flown into the Pentagon. Another crashed in Pennsylvania before the plan could be carried out. The other two were flown into the World Trade Center towers. Later that morning, both towers fell and around 3,000 people were killed.

Shortly after her visit to ground zero, Jackson said, the village pulled together to support New York residents.

Jackson and several volunteers fanned throughout the community and placed small U.S. flags on the lawns of every resident. Donations were collected from residents who wished to contribute.

Glendale Heights also hosted Jim Dahl, a New York City firefighter who had been among the first responders on that day. Dahl spoke at the village's public works building and the residents responded, showing up in droves, Jackson said.

"You heard the other part of it," Jackson said. "You really felt their pain."

Jackson said the fact that she was in New York so soon after the attacks added to her feeling of sorrow for the event.

"I wish everybody could have seen it firsthand," she said. "They would have more of a feeling of what an attack on our country really is."

The ceremony is one way Jackson said she can keep the attacks in the forefront of everybody's memory. She also tries to educate her 5-year-old grandson.

"I want kids to grow up knowing," she said. "Seeing what we saw, I just don't want people to ever, ever forget."