MONTICELLO – A 22-year old promise made was a promise kept by the Monticello Fire Department; one that swears to never forget the tragedy of September 11, 2001 and the 2,977 lives that were lost to the terrorist attacks.

To the sound of bagpipes, members of the various fire departments around the county, EMS agencies, United States Military veterans, local and state law enforcement and the general public gathered at the Monticello firehall on Monday, Sept. 11, and despite the rainy weather, the empathetic crowd amassed to grieve and remember together. 

Mobilemedic EMS’s Albee Bockman gave a rendition of the National Anthem after being led in by Sullivan County Coroner and Monticello Fire Department member Alan Kesten, who noted the profoundness of seeing not only adults who remember vividly the day it all happened, but the youth — especially those in the Rock Hill 101 Boy Scouts and Cub Scout packs. 

“We watch the news daily, and are bombarded by horrific events. Shootings are commonplace across America, overdoses are a family event in every small county and big city, car accidents caused by drunk drivers, innocent children abused, elderly being ripped off, businesses being hacked by internet pirates,” Kesten said. “None of it compares to 9/11, 2001.”

Kesten went on to note the 2,977 souls lost on the date, which included World Trade Center and Pentagon employees, passengers on Flight 93, civilians and, of course, the first responders, “who ran in as everyone else was running out.”

“We can’t change any of that, but we can focus on remembering the history of 9/11 — making sure the facts and historical information is accurate and not distorted to meet any agenda,” Kesten said.

Judge Ricciani took to the podium next, sharing with the crowd how she remembered that fateful day.

“On September 11, 2001, I was working at a law firm in Chester. Somehow we learned of the terrorist attacks. My boss had a small TV on the corner of his desk, we were all glued to the screen, watching it unfold in real time,” she said.

“I will never forget watching the second plane approach the South Tower and tilt the wings moments before impact to sustain the maximum amount of damage. At the time, the devastation was incomprehensible, and for that, life changed forever.”

Similarly to Kesten, the Family Court Judge noted the newer generation of Americans who were toddlers, young children, or not even alive yet at the time of the attack who have also been severely impacted by the repercussions.

“They’ve grown up without their mother, without their father, their grandparents and other family members and neighbors who perished in the attacks or who have suffered the long term health consequences from the aftermath,” Ricciani said.

“We remember the men and women who would not return that evening,” Ricciani said.

According to Kesten, a tradition within the fire service is a Signal 5 callout announcing the return of members of a fire department from being on-scene. In honor of the 343 firefighters who were unable to return home on September 11, a silver bell was rung five times accompanied by a somber silence from the crowd.

With the reverberation of the bell echoing throughout the fire hall, Monticello Fire Department’s past Chiefs walked out in unison into the drizzling rain to lay fresh flowers before the permanent 9/11 memorial outside the firehall. 

In addition to the Monticello Fire Department and other firehouses across the county, state and country, 9/11 memorial services were held at the Smallwood-Mongaup Valley Fire Department, the Town of Highland, and the Wurtsboro Fire Department and American Legion Mamakating Post 1266.

“If you remember the America that followed 9/11, there was a flag on every car. A flag on every business, a flag on every house, a flag on every building,” Kesten said. “We need to get back to that in the United States of America.”

For the 343 firefighters lost that day, Kesten reaffirmed the promise that so many individuals, organizations and fire service people have sworn to keep – that Monticello Fire Department “will never forget.”