ARANSAS PASS, Tx — Wednesday marked the 23rd anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Despite the passage of more than two decades, veterans and first responders in the Coastal Bend remember the day as if it were yesterday.
On Saturday, a group of veterans and firefighters gathered at the Aransas Pass Moose Lodge to honor the 2,977 lives lost. Among them was Samuel F. Ramirez, who served 11 years in the U.S. Armed Forces. Ramirez was at work in 2001 when a coworker told him to turn on the TV.
"You never expect that to happen in your lifetime," Ramirez told KRIS 6.
Although no longer on active duty, Ramirez's reaction to United Airlines Flight 175 hitting the South Tower was immediate.
"My first thought is, I'm waiting on my call. I'm ready to go back in, wherever they want to send me," HE SAID.
Also in attendance were members of the Aransas Pass Fire Department, including Assistant Fire Chief Jason Padron and Engineer Operator Donald Obenhaus. Padron was in high school during the attacks, while Obenhaus had just arrived at work in Aransas Pass.
As a first responder, Obenhaus was horrified by the images on the screen. Two decades later, he still reflects on the courage of the first responders at Ground Zero.
"It sounds weird, but I'm proud. I'm proud that all those men and women did their job the way they were supposed to," Obenhaus explained. "I'm sad that it cost them what it did, but we all accept that risk when we show up to work every day. So, I'm proud they did their job the way they did it."
Meanwhile, on the SouthSide, Edward Warren Jr. recalls a different perspective. Warren, an active member of the Navy at the time, was aboard the USS Kitty Hawk stationed in Japan. Initially thinking his fellow sailors were watching a movie, he quickly realized the world had changed forever. "I took my headphones off and asked, 'What's going on, guys?' And they told me, 'We're going to war.'"
Warren and his shipmates were cut off from the rest of the world for days, only seeing the full aftermath upon their return. Now, 23 years later, Warren remembers the day by reflecting on his shipmates.
"I think of my shipmates, my brothers, the people I was there with. That's who I think about, because we spent a lot of scary times together," he said.
The motto of September 11 is "Never Forget," but Ramirez expressed concern over the future.
"We will forget it," Ramirez said. "We can never let 9/11 become another shopping holiday. This is something that has to be ingrained in people's minds. It's too important to let go."
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