“Upon This Sacred Ground, Courage Remembered”

The National Park Service, the Families of Flight 93 and the Flight 93 project partners warmly invite and encourage the public to attend the planned events to commemorate the eighth anniversary of September 11^th. This year’s service is similar to the commemorative service on the five-year anniversary in 2006, and the public is asked to keep this in mind as they make their plans. All are welcome.

Commemorative Service

The formal commemorative service will take place on Friday morning, September 11, 2009, a short distance from the crash site on Skyline Road near Shanksville, Pennsylvania (please see specific directions to the site). The service begins at 9:45 AM.

The theme for this year’s commemoration is Upon This Sacred Ground, Courage Remembered. The Families of Flight 93 and the Flight 93 project partners wish to honor and pay tribute to the courage sustained on Flight 93 by the brave passengers and crew, while recognizing the final resting place where a memorial will be built to preserve their memory.

Keynote speaker will be General Colin L. Powell, United States Army (Ret) who served as secretary of state for the Bush administration during the September 11^th terrorist attacks. Other speakers include Secretary Tom Ridge, General Tommy R. Franks (Ret), and Mr. Gordon W. Felt, President of the Families of Flight 93. Country music artist Trace Adkins will sing the national anthem.

The traditional reading of the names of the passengers and crew, and tolling of the Bells of Remembrance by members of the Families of Flight 93 as well as members of the wider community who assisted on and around September 11, 2001, will take place over the time of the plane crash at 10:03 AM.

Attending the Service

• The Commemoration is open to the public. Due to anticipated increased attendance, visitors should plan to arrive before 8:15 a.m.

• No backpacks or large bags are permitted. A shuttle will be provided from the parking area to the ceremonial area. There will be no seating during the approximate one-hour service.
  
  
• Please follow signs for public entry from Lambertsville Road only and parking in the grass field on Skyline Road, uphill and west of the Temporary Memorial; accessible parking is available immediately adjacent to the Temporary Memorial.
  
  
• Any person or group planning their own personal ceremonial tribute, and/or require First Amendment accommodation must call the National Park Service office at 814.443.4557 for a Special Use Permit application or download the application from this website. The application needs to be submitted no later than August 31, 2009.
  
  
• September 11, 2009 Event Map

For all media inquiries regarding the event, please contact Lisa Linden at 212.575.4545 or llinden@lakpr.com

For further information about how you can help build the permanent memorial, go to:

www.honorflight93.org