GREG NOLL - SEPTEMBER 11th . . . A PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE

Community leaders, elected officials, family members of those who we honor today, fellow emergency responders, and citizens. Good Morning and thank you so much for the opportunity to be with you here this morning.

Religious tradition teaches us that “one who seeks honor finds that honor eludes him, and one who does not seek honor, honor overtakes him.” Today, we honor those who did not desire public recognition but who are most deserving of it.

We are brought here this morning for three reasons. First – to dedicate this memorial and forever honor the memory of those Lancaster County police officers, firefighters and EMS personnel who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. Second – to remember the events of September 11, 2001 – to honor the memory of all who were murdered that day, and to remind all. And finally – we are here to remind each other that as Americans, there are responsibilities that fall upon each of us.

Lancaster County Public Safety Memorial

The Lancaster County Public Safety Memorial is a testimony that good things can happen when good people get together. Through those efforts, our County and our citizens are able to honor the memory of those 43 individuals – both men and women – who have died in the line of duty over the last 140 years. And while we may honor them as law enforcement, fire and EMS responders, we also remember them as fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, husbands, and wives, relatives, co-workers and friends.

We often tend to emphasize the differences between the response disciplines that make up the public safety community. I’d like to focus for a few moments upon what I believe these 43 individuals shared:

• First, they shared a call for duty – they were givers not takers. Collectively they all worked in the “Bad Day” business. When they performed their services, they dealt with citizens – their customers – who were not just having a bad day, but in many instances the worst day of their life.

• They shared a strong bond with those with whom they worked with and alongside. The bonds that join emergency responders are no different than those bonds that join those who have served in battle together. Individuals who will always have your back . . . who will never let their peers down . . . even if the ultimate sacrifice may be required.

• Finally, they collectively shared a strong bond with their family members and loved ones. Although many have long passed, their memories and what they had accomplished has not been forgotten.

Just as we remember these 43 individuals before us, we also are here to remember the anniversary of September 11th, 2001. Today marks nine years since the terrorist attacks on the United States. Almost 3,000 people died that day, the largest number of war-related deaths on any single day since the Civil War. For many Americans, this date will always have a special meaning. Some will remember their lost friends and loved ones; others will view it as a generational equivalent to December 7, 1941. And as we move farther and farther beyond the date, others will simply forget.

On September 11, 2001 at l2:15 PM, myself and approximately 80 other emergency responders left our homes and traveled to Harrisburg International Airport where PA Task Force 1, one of twenty-eight Federal urban search and rescue (USAR) teams, assembled in preparation for our response to the World Trade Center (WTC). We would remain in New York as part of the WTC rescue effort until September 19th. Those eight days forever changed how I look at the world, our country, and my family.

There are certain images that I will always remember, and some that I cannot forget. People have told me that they just couldn’t imagine what it was like. They talk about the images. . . the pictures. . . the video. But what they can’t capture are the smells and the emotions of being there . . .

Saturday, September 15th was an example of one of our better days. It was a clear, beautiful September day . . . you could see the F-16’s and F-18’s circling high above over Manhattan. We spent most of the day working on Tower 1, now a rubble pile 6 or 7 stories high. It was also the day where one of our search dogs, a golden retriever named Riley, made CNN and Life magazine. The FDNY Battalion Chief supervising our area asked if we could get a search dog up to our location, a request easier said than done. But 30 minutes later, after being hoisted above a 60 ft. ravine and then being passed person-to-person while sitting in a Stokes rescue basket, Riley was with us on the rubble pile at Tower 1. Remains of approximately 1,100 victims have never been found. But on that day the bodies of two firefighters and a civilian were found in that area. It was a good day . . .

I remember the posters and the photographs of the civilians who were missing. The names and faces may have been different, but the words were always the same. As a father of three, those showing missing parents with their kids were always the toughest. And while one could hope, nothing could change reality as the days passed.

I also remember coming home and seeing my wife and family. Words can’t convey what I felt in my heart. In the end, everything comes back to family. I thought that I would be able to pick up where life was on September 10th. Eventually it did, but not until several weeks went past. Thankfully, my best friend gave me time, space, and a strong shoulder when I needed it.

Closing Thoughts

As we share this journey this morning, I would finally like to ask each of you to take a step back to think about who we are and what we are . . . not just as individuals, or family members,, or citizens, or emergency responders, but most importantly, as Americans. As I have gotten older, I find that more and more of us have forgotten not just who we are . . . but more importantly, where we have come from . . . and the sacrifices that have allowed us to enjoy our freedoms. Sometimes it takes people who have come from other countries to the United States to remind us.

One such example is Mr. Quang Nguyen . . . today he is an American citizen. But 35 years ago, at the age of 13, he was one of 100,000 Vietnamese who were lucky enough to come to the United States. Many in this audience remember the Vietnamese families who were brought to Fort Indiantown Gap after the fall of South Vietnam. Earlier this summer, Mr. Nguyen was asked to speak at the Prescott Valley, AZ Freedom Rally on his experiences of coming to America and what it means to him. Let me quote Mr. Nguyen . . .

“Fast forwarding, somehow I finished high school, finished college, and like any other goofball 21 year old kid, I was having a great time with my life, I had a nice job and a nice apartment in Southern California. In someway and somehow, I had forgotten how I got here and why I am here.

One day I was at a gas station, I saw a veteran pumping gas on the other side of the island. I don’t know what made me do it, but I walked over and asked if he had served in Vietnam. He smiled and said Yes. I shook and held his hand. The grown man began to well up. I walked away as fast as I could and at that very moment, I was emotionally rocked. This was a profound moment in life. I knew something had to change in my life. It was time for me to learn how to be a good citizen. It was time for me to give back.

You see . . . America is not a place on the map, it isn’t a physical location. It is an ideal, a concept. And if you are an American, you must understand the concept, you must buy into this concept and most importantly, you have to fight and defend this concept. You see . . . this isn’t about free stuff . . . it’s about Freedom.”

So that brings us back to today, September 11, 2010. Whether you want to call it the global war against terrorism, an overseas contingency operation, or whatever the next politically correct term will be – the reality still remains the same. There are people in this world who would kill all of us here today for no other reason than we are Americans.

The freedoms that we have in this country are due to the sacrifices that many men and women have made in our history, including those serving today in Iraq, Afghanistan and other locations throughout the world. Personally, I will not forget. Rather, as I have done on every September 11th – I vow to do everything in my power to ensure that others will remember that 3,000 people were murdered that day – not because they were black or white, Catholic, Muslim, Jewish or Protestant . . . but because they were Americans.

For myself, NEVER FORGETTING means NEVER FORGETTING:

- Who attacked us.

- Why they attacked us.

- Who gave their lives that day.

- And, who continues to suffer each and every day.

I don’t know what the future will bring us. Perhaps a day may come where I am ready to forgive –

but I will never, never forget.

Thank you for this opportunity to be with you today and please enjoy the remainder of today’s ceremony.