NC State will wear black camoflauge uniforms for its Friday night game against Richmond at Carter-Finley Stadium as North Carolina communities mark the 9/11 25th anniversary. Across Raleigh, Durham, Cary, Clayton and Fayetteville, groups are pairing remembrance with volunteer work and stair climbs.
Dave Doeren said the uniforms are meant to honor people tied to the attacks and those who responded to them. “This is another way to honor not just the military, but the first responders, NYPD and all the firemen that were there on the scene,” he said.
Raleigh and the Triangle
WRAL News will begin live coverage at 4:30 a.m., with the events livestreamed on WRAL.com. Activate Good has listed 9/11 Day of Service Projects throughout the Triangle, including two volunteer events at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. at John Chavis Memorial Park in Raleigh.
North Carolina State University will host volunteers at the Wellness and Rec Center at 2611 Cates Ave. from 9 to 11 a.m. on Sept. 11. The work there will assemble non-perishable meal packages for the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina.
The anniversary is being marked with a full schedule, not a single ceremony. That means people who want to volunteer, reflect or attend a game tribute have several choices within the same day.
Durham, Cary and Clayton
Keep Durham Beautiful will hold a 9/11 Day of Service cleanup on Friday, Sept. 11, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. Participants will meet at Morehead Avenue and Blackwell Street, and the event is open to people ages 8 and up. Participants under 16 must be accompanied by an adult.
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will hold a 9/11 Stair Climb at Kenan Stadium at 6 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 11. In Cary, volunteers will honor first responders with a garden workday at Fire Station 3 and plant fall produce. Clayton will hold a 9/11 Memorial Ceremony from 9 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at Municipal Park, where local first responders will read firsthand accounts from that day.
The Clayton ceremony will include 343 fire flags, 72 police flags and eight EMS flags. The Airborne & Special Operations Museum will also host the public at its 9/11 25th Anniversary Remembrance Ceremony.
Fort Bragg and Fayetteville
Fort Bragg hosted a stair challenge on Thursday, Sept. 10, at Hedrick Stadium in Fayetteville. The event included an option to wear a ruck with a weight of 40 pound for men and 20 pounds for women.
The Tunnel to Towers Foundation will hold a stair climb at 150 Fayetteville St. in downtown Raleigh on Saturday, Sept. 12, at 8 a.m. For readers choosing among events, Friday is the busiest day, but the observances continue into Saturday for people who cannot attend earlier.
Doeren said the tribute is meant to reach beyond the stadium. “We’ve all watched the shows, the movies, the you-name-it about what happened that day and how crazy it was,” he said. “It’s just a chance for those that are up there watching down on us and for those families that went through it to know that people care.”
He added, “That was a hard moment on everybody, and we’re just trying to honor that.”
