Students attending Saint Ursula Academy were not yet born on September 11, 2001, so they are learning from those who were as the nation marks the 20-year anniversary of the attacks on the US on 9/11.
Led by students, the school hosted a remembrance event on campus that included a presentation from area first responders and emergency medical professionals, a video timeline of the attacks, and yellow ribbons tied by students all around the campus.
Junior Sydney Hamilton brought the idea for the 20th-anniversary memorial event to school administrators, who helped her plan the event. Sydney’s dad is a Staff Lieutenant in the Ohio Highway Patrol and her mom is a nurse who works in healthcare.
The guest officers and emergency nurses talked to the students in attendance about the events that took place on 9/11, their memories of where they were when they learned of the attacks, and how it changed how police, fire, and emergency medical teams do their jobs.
Alicia Tidwell, SUA Interim Senior Director of Equity, Inclusion and Student Life, and co-organizer of Saint Ursula’s 9/11 event, shared, “Saint Ursula Academy honors those from many nations, faiths, and backgrounds who lost their lives on 9/11. We pay tribute to the resilience and determination of the communities who joined together to rebuild and become united. Saint Ursula is a community who lifts as we climb just as the first responders lifted and carried one person at a time to safety.”
Amber Antoni, an Emergency Management Leader, shared her personal memories of that dark day and explained that despite the tragedy, it led to better efficiency and preparedness for all emergency responders. She said “Bad things will happen. It’s important that we learn from them to be better prepared for the future. This growth helps us make ourselves better and safer.”
Saint Ursula Academy President Lelia Keefe Kramer ’77 shared her gratitude to our officers, first responders, and medical professionals who keep us safe and take care of us when we need it.
In addition to the presentation, students tied yellow ribbons on the fence around the Saint Ursula campus in memory of those lost and those who served. It is a symbol that these students join with the rest of the country in promising to NEVER FORGET what happened on 9/11, those we lost, and how we came together as a nation.
Photo of Event Contributors:
Mary Hamilton MSN, RN, NE-BC, Officer Karen LeRay – Cincinnati Police Department, Sergeant Christina Hayes – Ohio State Highway, Junior Grace Staarmann, Junior Sydney Hamilton, Amber Antoni RN - Emergency Management Leader, Jennell Collins RN and Emergency Nursing Leader, Cara Tuerck ’02 - RN and Emergency Nursing Leader, Alicia Tidwell- SUA Interim Senior Director of Equity, Inclusion and Student Life, Staff Lieutenant Matt Hamilton