Wednesday memorial will honor victims

By By Steve Gillespie / staff writer
Sept. 10, 2002
Capt. Keith McCary of the Meridian Police Department will always remember two national events during his life: President Kennedy's assassination and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
He was nearly 2 when a news bulletin interrupted the television program he was watching. His parents explained that Kennedy had been shot. He remembers climbing under his bed to hide.
Last year, on Sept. 11, McCary, who is director of training for the police department, had scheduled an accident reconstruction class when he saw news of the terrorist attacks.
When the second plane hit the World Trade Center's north tower, McCary told the class the news and they watched the events unfold together.
On Wednesday, one year after the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, McCary will deliver a prayer at the Sept. 11 Remembrance at the Central Fire Station in Meridian.
Senior firefighter Jay Crane of the Meridian Fire Department will deliver a national firefighters' prayer during the ceremony.
He said he had just gotten off work and was driving home on Sept. 11, 2001, when he heard the news on the radio that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center.
A few seconds after he turned on his television at home, the second plane hit.
He said the terrorist attacks brought not only firefighters and other emergency personnel closer together, but also the entire nation.
McCary said he hopes the ceremony in Meridian, like others across the country, will let the families of those who died know that their loved ones are remembered and they didn't die in vain.
He hopes a degree of closure will come from the remembrance, too.
Remembering 9-11:
Here is a look at memorials planned Wednesday for the one-year anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Meridian service: September 11 Remembrance, 8:45 a.m., Central Fire Station, 2500 14th St. It will include prayer, music and a symbolic bell-ringing to mark the collapse of the World Trade Center towers.
Mississippi State University-Meridian Campus: Rally at the Pole, noon. Faculty, students and staff can express their thoughts about the terrorist attacks. Light refreshments follow in the MSU building.
Citywide rally: See You at the Pole, 6:30 p.m., Meridian High School, 2320 32nd. St. Several local youth ministers from various churches organized this program, which will include guest speakers, music and a color guard presentation.