Two remembrance ceremonies will be held in Reading on Friday, Sept. 11, as the City of Reading and Berks County commemorate the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
The first ceremony will begin at 8:43 a.m. at the September 11th Memorial Tree in Reading’s City Park, near Constitution Boulevard and Hill Road. The memorial service is being organized by the Reading Fire Department and will include Fire Chief Robert Leonard II, Mayor Eddie Morán and other city officials.
The service will honor those who died in the attacks at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The fire department said the ceremony will place particular emphasis on the 343 New York City firefighters who were killed in the collapse of the World Trade Center towers.
Those unable to attend the city’s ceremony will be able to watch it live through the City of Reading’s Facebook page, the city’s Municipal Access Channel and BCTV. In the event of inclement weather, the service will be moved to City Hall Council Chambers.
Morán has also ordered Reading City Hall and the Pagoda to be illuminated in red, white and blue in remembrance of those who died and to recognize the strength and unity of the nation.
A second ceremony organized by Berks County will take place from 10 to 11 a.m. in front of the Berks County Services Center.
The county’s 9/11 25-Year Remembrance Ceremony will include opening remarks, presentation of the colors and national anthem, an invocation, guest speakers, a fire department brass bell ringing and the singing of “God Bless America.”
Scheduled presenters include Chief Warrant Officer II Will Tobin, deputy director of Berks County Veterans Affairs; singer-songwriter Kendal Conrad; the Rev. Ben Motz of Bausman UCC in Wyomissing; U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan; state Rep. Mark Gillen; Lt. Col. Jay Ostrich of the U.S. Air Force; Berks County Sheriff Mandy Miller; Chief Anthony Kuklinski; and the Berks County Commissioners.
County officials said all members of the community are welcome to attend the ceremony to “remember, reflect, and stand together in hope and unity.”
If there is inclement weather, the county ceremony will move indoors to the second-floor auditorium of the Berks County Services Center.