University to hold memorial events all day Sept. 11

Members of the University community will be invited to place a small American flag on the… Members of the University community will be invited to place a small American flag on the Cathedral of Learning lawn near Heinz Memorial Chapel tomorrow so that by 10:29 a.m., the precise time the North Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed, the lawn will be a blanket of red, white and blue. Representing each life lost on Sept. 11, 3,041 small flags will be available for placement on the lawn during the “Flags for Heroes Ceremony.”

The “Flags for Heroes Ceremony” is just one of several events scheduled to occur tomorrow. University members are invited to attend any of the activities included in “Remember, Reflect, Renew,” a daylong series of events in commemoration of the terrorist attacks a year ago.

Jean Ferketish, Pitt’s assistant chancellor and secretary of the board, said the memorial activities Wednesday will give students and faculty a chance to remember Sept. 11, 2001, any way they choose.

“We tried to give people a choice of how to commemorate the anniversary with a wide range of activities,” Ferketish said. “Making a schedule of events meant bringing together the synergy of what everyone was doing, so events will start at specific times in accordance with specific events of last year.”

The day begins at 8:30 a.m. with a bagpiper playing “Amazing Grace,” and a soloist singing “America the Beautiful” on the Cathedral lawn near Heinz Chapel. Chancellor Mark Nordenberg will reflect on the meaning of the day and remember alumni who perished on Sept. 11. The ROTC Flag Detail will then raise the flag at the Cathedral to half-staff.

“The tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001, deeply affected every American, including those who study, teach or work at the University of Pittsburgh,” said Nordenberg in a written statement. “As with other critical moments in our nation’s history, it is important that we remember Sept. 11 and not only those who perished, but also those who did whatever they could to help ease the suffering of others. And by remembering, we can remain committed to doing whatever we can to change the world so that such a tragedy never happens again.”

A national moment of silence will be observed at 8:46 a.m. to remember the time when American Airlines Flight 11 hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center. Students, faculty and staff are encouraged to join in the national moment.

The “Flags for Heroes Ceremony” will begin upon the conclusion of the moment of silence, with members of the audience placing flags on the Cathedral lawn. The flags will stand until 5 p.m., when the ROTC Flag Detail will lower the Cathedral flag. Anyone wanting a memento of the day may take a flag from the lawn between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m.

“One thing that I’m very pleased with is the volunteering by people from Facilities Management in this ceremony,” Ferketish said. “They have volunteered to make flag holders, and since there hasn’t been any rain, the ground is like concrete. But these volunteers are working Tuesday night to get things set up. That just tells you how much interest there is in the day.”

Heinz Chapel will open at 9:03 a.m., the time that United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center. The Chaplains Association will hold a public interfaith service at 9:30 a.m. The chapel will remain open until midnight and hold its regularly scheduled mass service at noon.

“Sept. 11 – A Remembrance,” an exhibit of newspaper articles on the attacks, will go on display in the Conney M. Kimbo Gallery on the first floor of the William Pitt Union at 9:43 a.m., the time American Airlines Flight 77 hit the Pentagon. The exhibit, sponsored by Pitt Program Council, will remain on display through Saturday, and visitors will have a chance to write “Expressions of Hope” in special cards intended for families of victims and men and women currently serving overseas in the fight against terrorism.

HBO’s “In Memoriam” will begin running at 10:10 a.m., the time United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, Pa., in the WPU Assembly Room. The film will run repeatedly throughout the day, with the last full screening taking place at 9:11 p.m.

To mark the time of the second WTC tower collapse, St. Paul’s Roman Catholic Cathedral on Fifth Avenue will join other houses of worship across the country by ringing its bells at 10:29 a.m.

Ferketish said that scheduling events to honor specific times was the most important part of the day’s events.

“So many people involved in the day had to adjust their schedules to fit the times,” she said, “but they were willing to do that.” She said correlating memorial events with last year’s events is “subtle, but meaningful.”

The effects of Sept. 11 were felt throughout the world, and to expose students to foreign reaction, the University Center for International Studies and the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs will host a symposium on how the events of Sept. 11 were perceived abroad. The symposium will occur at noon in 2P56 Posvar Hall.

The day’s events conclude with “Renewal at Twilight,” a program at Heinz Chapel that pays tribute to the victims of Sept. 11 at 7 p.m. The 45-minute program will end with the illumination of the chapel windows and the placing of luminaries on the Cathedral and WPU lawns, which will burn throughout the night.