09/11/2026
This morning, I looked out the window and the beauty of the rising sun struck me. “It’s going to be a beautiful day” I thought.
My thoughts quickly turned to another September morning that dawned clear and hopeful but would soon see thousands of Americans killed by what was to many at the time an unthinkable act of terror. I remembered how much I felt the world shift that day. I was 14 and a high school freshman, watching devastation befall my country live on a tv on a cart in my earth science class.
That day changed all of us, in different ways. So many lost their family members, or simply the innocence we all seemed to have with the birth of the new century.
So much of the division we feel today is born of that change. But today, I call on my friends and neighbors to remember the feelings of solidarity and patriotism and pride as we watched so many brave people rush in to help victims in NY and DC and the brave individuals of flight 93. Remember the dream for our country that existed before that day, the dream of a prosperous and welcoming country exited for the future.
And of course, remember all of those that lost their lives in this horrific tragedy.
I have always felt the best way to honor the memory of the fallen is for us as a nation to come together and return to that vision- to the American Dream and the American Spirit.
To all those who are grieving today, as I am, let us take comfort in knowing we’ve never forgotten. And we’re never giving up.
-Caitlin Ogden, Chair.
