A memorial wreath rests beneath an American flag during a 9/11 Memorial Ceremony at the North Carolina National Guard Joint Force Headquarters in Raleigh, North Carolina, Sept. 11, 2026. The wreath represents remembrance and honor for the lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001, as well as the service and sacrifice of those who answered the call in the years that followed.
(U.S. Army National Guard photo by Spc. Brooke Kentler/Released)
A memorial wreath rests beneath an American flag during a 9/11 Memorial Ceremony at the North Carolina National Guard Joint Force Headquarters in Raleigh, North Carolina, Sept. 11, 2026. The wreath represents remembrance and honor for the lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001, as well as the service and sacrifice of those who answered the call in the years that followed.
(U.S. Army National Guard photo by Spc. Brooke Kentler/Released)
RALEIGH, N.C. – At 8:46 a.m., a single bell rang across the North Carolina National Guard Joint Force Headquarters, marking the moment American Airlines Flight 11 struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center 25 years ago. Soldiers, Airmen, first responders, families, state leaders, and community members gathered around the Minuteman Statue, carrying memories of a day that changed the nation and the generations that followed.
The sound of the bell opened a ceremony centered on more than the tragedy itself. It was a remembrance of the lives lost, the families forever changed, and the people who stepped forward in the aftermath, answering a call to serve their country and communities.
“We gather today to remember those who were...
