Subscribe
Apex, North Carolina- It's been 25 years of remembering that day\, honoring the lives lost\, and recognizing the generations that have grown up in its aftermath. September 11\, 2001\, marked a turning point in American history\, bringing unimaginable tragedy while uniting a nation around a promise to never forget.
For some, remembering means passing the stories of that day from one generation to the next. For others, it means answering the call to serve as a soldier, police officer, firefighter, or other first responder; picking up the torch carried by those who came before them.
“I already knew I wanted to serve, but 9/11 made that passion stronger, and it continues to this day,” said U.S. Army 1st Sgt. Robert Henderson, 1st Sgt. for the 211th Military Police Company On his birthday, Henderson was walking into his chorus class when he saw the devastating news of the planes hitting the Twin Towers. Like so many who witnessed one of America’s greatest tragedies, he did not know how to make sense of what he was seeing.
“I didn’t know how to feel at the time,” said Henderson. ‘I was just 16. " Shortly after graduating, Henderson knew exactly what he wanted to do: serve. Growing up, he always wanted to be either a police officer or a soldier but did not know he could do both.
“9/11 made that passion stronger, and it continues to this day,” said Henderson.
Highly motivated by what he saw on the news that day, in 2004, Henderson spoke with a recruiter, and shortly after, he entered basic and advanced individual training, where he enlisted as a 31B, Military Police. He returned to North Carolina and was assigned to the new Detachment 1, HHC, 30th Brigade Special Troops Battalion.
“The ones we lost that day were real people who went to work that morning, with real families who never got to see them again,” said Henderson. “An entire generation of people’s lives changed because of what happened that day and the subsequent war on terror, which is often forgotten.”
In 2009, his detachment deployed to Iraq, where they served as a convoy security detail, and Henderson also worked in the unit’s tactical operations center. Shortly after returning, he pursued his dual calling to serve by attending basic law enforcement training before deploying to Afghanistan as a staff sergeant with the 211th Military Police Company. This was a way for Henderson to honor those memories he had when he was 16 years old.
“We need to continue remembering that day by honoring the ones we lost,” said Henderson. “This doesn’t mean you have to put on a uniform, but if an opportunity comes to be part of something bigger than yourself, don’t be afraid to answer the call.”
Henderson’s career in both the military and law enforcement continues to evolve. He was sworn in with the Apex Police Department in 2017 and became the 211th 1st Sgt. in 2025; his commitment to service has never wavered. Henderson carries the torch for those who were lost on that tragic day, allowing their sacrifice to continue to shape his own service while reminding the next generation why we must never forget.
“Eventually, everyone who personally remembers 9/11 will be gone,” said Henderson. “The responsibility falls on this generation to make sure the memory doesn’t fade, and to understand what was sacrificed to preserve the freedoms they inherited”.
| Date Taken: | 08.14.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 09.04.2026 11:37 |
| Photo ID: | 9879499 |
| VIRIN: | 260814-A-NC780-4679 |
| Resolution: | 2048x1365 |
| Size: | 501.42 KB |
| Location: | APEX, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 0 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Selfless Service: Honoring the ones lost but never forgotten, by SGT Wesley Riley, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
