9/11 memorial events planned around the Treasure Valley; there’s a monument in Boise
By 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 11, 2001, much of the World Trade Center in New York’s Financial District had been destroyed. Two planes had collided with the Twin Towers, a third had hit the Pentagon, in Virginia, and a fourth plane crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. In all, the violence that day killed almost 3,000 people.
On Saturday, multiple law enforcement agencies in the Treasure Valley and other groups are holding memorials in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of 9/11. Here’s a list of some of the organized events:
Meridian: The Meridian Fire Department will honor those who died during the attacks at Fire State One (540 E. Franklin Road) on Saturday. The event, which begins at 7:45 a.m., will include comments from Fire Chief Kris Blume, lowering flags to half-staff and the ringing of the fire station bell, according to a release.
Caldwell: As part of a coordinated event across the U.S., a group from Elevate Academy, a school in Caldwell, will read the names of 50 people killed on 9/11 or during the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, according to a release. They will also raise an Official 9/11 Flag of Honor, which bears the names of all 2,983 people killed in the 2001 and 1993 attacks. The Saturday event will be at Indian Creek Plaza, in Caldwell, just after 8 a.m.
Eagle: An Idaho veterans organization, Mission43, will hold its 6th annual Miles of Remembrance 5-kilometer run at the Eagle Sports Complex, according to a release. Attendees are invited to run or walk the event, which is scheduled to run from 3 to 7 p.m. Those interested can register for the race on the organization’s website.
A golf tournament in honor of 9/11 will also be held in Eagle on Saturday, at Eagle Hills Golf Course (605 N. Edgewood Lane), according to a release. The 9-11 Never Forget Ceremony and Golf Tournament will raise money for the Fraternal Order of Police and the Professional Firefighters of Idaho, the release said, and will include Boise Pipe and Drums and an Honor Guard. The ceremony begins at 9 a.m.
VISIT 9/11 MEMORIAL IN BOISE
Since 2014, a piece of the World Trade Center — a 10-foot steel beam — has been part of a memorial along the Boise River Greenbelt. This weekend, Idahoans can visit the sculpture, which sits next to the Idaho Fallen Firefighters Memorial Plaza along Shoreline Drive near the Boise River.
New York’s Port Authority distributed more than 2,600 pieces of steel and other building materials recovered from the World Trade Center site to communities around the world, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s website. Boise’s beam was acquired in 2011, according to the city’s website.
The Boise Fire Department requested a piece of the destroyed buildings and partnered with the city’s departments of Arts and History and Parks and Recreation to find artists and landscape architects for the project. Artist J. Amber Conger and Jensen Belts Associates, a local landscape architecture firm, collaborated on the project at the park near the Boise Connector.
Called the Idaho World Trade Center 9/11 Memorial, it was completed on Sept. 11, 2014. The names of fallen rescue workers from 9/11 are engraved in the statute.
