Firefighters, cadets honor 9/11 with stair climbs

RUSSELLVILLE – Firefighters and RHS JROTC cadets participated in a stair climb in recognition of the 24th anniversary of 9-11.

Sgt. Grant Tarascou and firefighter Landon Beard completed 110 floors in full turnout gear to honor those who died at the World Trade Center.

Deputy Chief Randy Seal said stair climb challenges have become a tradition for first responders as a way to remember those who “gave all that day in 2001.”

Seal said Tarascou and Beard had been training at Station 2. That preparation gave personal meaning to the challenge.

“I couldn’t climb enough stairs to actually honor what the firemen did that day,” Beard said. “But I can show up to the firehouse every day prepared just like they were that morning. No one can replace them. I strive every day to have the passion they did for the job.”

Tarascou said his memories of that day are still clear.

“Being 12 years old at the time, I didn’t understand fully what kind of tragedy it really was,” he said. “But I’ll never forget sitting in class and the teacher rolling the TV cart in there for us to witness it.

“I do remember it being really shocking and seeing the emotional reactions from the teachers. I’m thankful I had the opportunity to participate in the event to show a sense of remembrance for those brave firefighters on that day.”

At Russellville High, the JROTC program found its own way to reflect on 9/11.

Leigh Mayer, an inschool suspension aide who helps with JROTC, said the stair climb is typically 2,200 steps, or 110 flights.

With the time constraints, she said it wasn’t realistic for each cadet to do the full amount, so the three classes combined their totals.

Altogether, the 47 cadets climbed 15,327 stairs, which equaled 766 flights.

The students hadn’t known about the plan until they arrived that morning, but Mayer said they embraced the challenge.

The challenge lasted about 40 minutes per class block.

“The stair climb challenge has been around for years, but this was the first time our cadets participated,” Mayer said. “Absolutely, we’ll do it again next year. Next time we’ll give the kids more time to prepare instead of surprising them.”

Mayer, who is from Pennsylvania, said being close to where the attacks happened gave her a different perspective, too.

“When the students realized they had each climbed 16 to 19 flights, I asked them to imagine doing 110,” she said. “They were shocked and said they didn’t know if they could. It helped them understand what firefighters went through that day.”

Mayer said another student asked why they only counted going up and not down.

“I told him, ‘Because those firefighters never got to come down.’ That really hit home.”

“To many kids, 9/11 is just something in a history book,” Mayer said. “But they did this without complaining and showed respect for people who died before they were born. I was really proud.”

For Mayer, the attacks were not just history but lived memory.

“I left campus to drive home right after the towers fell,” she said. “We lived 45 minutes outside New York City, and all along the highway the electronic signs read ‘No access to New York City,’ ‘Holland Tunnel closed,’ ‘Lincoln Tunnel closed,’ ‘GW Bridge closed.’ The roads were eerie and empty.”

That sense of shock lingered long after the drive.

“In the days after, once airspace reopened, you’d constantly watch the sky, wondering. My husband was living on Long Island then. He actually saw the second tower fall with his own eyes.”