For Americans across the country, including in Naperville the events of September 11, 2001 are something that will forever be etched in their memory.
“23 years ago, our country was attacked, and with that attack came immediate fear, panic and despair, not just with those directly involved but for all of us,” said Naperville Police Department Chief Jason Arres. “We watched the planes crash. We watched the buildings fall and we watched terror grip our nation.”
September 11 Remembrance Ceremony
During the City of Naperville’s annual September 11 Remembrance Ceremony, city leaders, including Chief Arres, Mayor Scott Wehrli, and Fire Department Chief Mark Puknaitis, recounted the emotions they felt as the terrorist attacks unfolded.
“I’ll never forget my wife and I holding our 1-year-old son on that beautiful morning, terrified of the future he may one day face, all of our lives forever changed,” said Mayor Scott Wehrli.
Naperville Responds for Veterans organized this year’s ceremony. Words of reflection, a 21-gun salute, and the ringing of bells all paid tribute to the nearly 3,000 innocent lives lost the morning of the terrorist attacks, including many first responders and selfless everyday heroes.
“We watched people run into danger to save others. We watched people with different backgrounds and views work side by side,” said Chief Arres.
Keynote Speaker Elizabeth McConkie, Sycamore High School
Offering a different perspective from previous remembrance ceremonies, keynote speaker Elizabeth McConkie is a high school senior, not even born yet when the 9/11 attacks happened.
“I was not alive when America’s worst times were met with America’s best qualities of sacrifice, unity, and bravery,” said McConkie. “Memorials such as this one are powerful, poignant reminders of the past. Memorials across the United States remind us of significant events that form our country’s identity.”
McConkie is a senior at Sycamore High School and is one of six children in her family. She works as a DeKalb County Election judge and was a 2024 Voice of Democracy award recipient.
“I am so grateful to have the chance to speak to the City of Naperville and offer my perspective as someone who wasn’t alive when it happened,” said McConkie
Naperville’s monument, a model for the nation
Naperville was among the first cities in the country to create such a memorial, named after Commander Dan Shanower of Naperville, a Naval officer who was killed in the September 11 attack on the Pentagon.
Speakers from the ceremony hope it continues to honor the victims for generations to come, as well as serve as a sobering reminder that freedom isn’t free.
“What you leave behind is not what’s engraved in stone monuments but what is woven into the lives of others,” said McConkie.
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