Sept. 11, 2001 is etched in our memories forever. On the sixth anniversary of the terrorist attacks, two events in our region of interest to air travelers will mark the occasion in different ways. A roundup of all events in the region can be found here. Read on to learn more about the two special events.
The PHL administration and the City of Philadelphia will hold a ceremony at 1 p.m. in the Terminal B-C ticketing area. Remarks by city officials will be followed by a moment of silence and singing of the national anthem. The public and those who work at the airport are invited.
The other event is not open to the public but deserves recognition by anyone who flies on airlines because of who it honors. The Canadian Consultate of Philadelphia is hosting a breakfast in Center City honoring Claude Elliot, the mayor of Gander, Newfoundland. That's the city on Canada's northeastern shore, a longtime trans-Atlantic stopover point in the days before jets, where dozens of flights were forced to land in the first hours after the attacks. The notice of the event here tomorrow says why Mr. Elliot was invited better than we can, so here it is verbatim:
"The Canadian Consulate in Philadelphia and local community and business leaders will pay tribute to Mayor Elliott and the people of Gander for the hospitality they extended to passengers from some 40 nations, including several from the Delaware Valley. Mayor Elliott will share his recollections of his city’s emergency response to 9-11. For nearly a week the people of Gander, at their own expense, opened their homes, schools and churches to house 6,595 unexpected guests, cooked meals, rounded up bedding, provided ground transportation and free telephone service to passengers coping with both disruption of their travel and the emotions of 9-11. The tremendous outpouring came despite potential risk to the residents' personal safety, since both U.S. and Canadian authorities initially suspected additional terrorists might be aboard the incoming flights."
What more can we say but thank you.
Philly.com discussions are intended to be civil, friendly conversations. Please treat other participants with respect and in a way that you would want to be treated. You are responsible for what you say. And please, stay on topic.
These boards are monitored by Philly.com staff. We reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us in our sole discretion and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. Personal attacks, especially on other board participants, are not permitted. We reserve the right to permanently block any user who violates these terms and conditions.