September 11 Remembrance: The Ogden Exhibit Gives Students A Detailed Look at the Tragedy | News, Sports, Jobs

OGDEN – The attacks of September 11 can be etched in the memories of those who lived at the time. Those born later are also well aware of what happened.

“They have always had teachers talking about it. They keep a moment of silence, ”said Kylie White, professor of history at Bonneville high school at Washington Terrace.

However, living when the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 took place and learning from it after the fact are very different things. “It’s something we know happened, but it’s something we don’t fully understand,” said Cache Littrell, an unborn Grade 11 student at Bonneville High School. when the attacks took place.

The 20th anniversary retrospective of the Weber County Fairground complex bombings is intended to help fill knowledge gaps, and on Friday hundreds of school children passed, including Cache and others from Bonneville High School, getting an intense 9/11 history lesson. . The exhibition, which features video recordings, written documents and photos, is titled Weber remembers: the 9/11 project and it ends on Saturday, the 20th anniversary of the attacks.

The public is welcome and the opening hours on Saturdays will be from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. The exhibition is concentrated in the exhibition and recreation halls of the fairgrounds, 1000 N. 1200 West in Ogden.

“I want to keep the memory alive,” said Scott Zink, a retired New York Police Department sergeant now living in Park City who helped respond to the 9/11 attacks. He attends Weber Remembers, runs a costumed booth with NYPD brands, talks to visiting students and others. His stand features a shredded debris from one of the planes that struck the Twin Towers that day that he was able to get his hands on.

To participate in activities like Weber Remembers is to be aware of the horror that occurred in an attempt to avoid a repeat, Zink said. Details of what happened can get lost in the story. It is also about honoring those who contributed to the response. “There are so many unknown heroes that no one knows,” Zink said.

Students who visit the exhibit on Friday are undoubtedly part of the tragedy.

Bailee Ward, a grade 10 student at Bonneville High School, has heard stories from her mother and others about 9/11. Many across the country were just preparing for the day when the news broke on television about the unfolding events. His mother “was looking at him and it was like the world had gone silent,” Bailee said.

Lucas Staten, another Grade 10 student from Bonneville, said his parents were helping his older siblings prepare for school. “They were just shocked and stuff,” he said.

Yet for them, this is second-hand information.

“I know it’s a big deal, but you don’t really feel it,” having not been there, said Emma Spikes, an 11th grader at Bonneville High School. “I just know it was very upsetting.”

This is not to say that seeing videos or photos of what happened is not disturbing. “They show it in class, it’s really scary,” said 11th grader Zulufa Kabuo.

And the exhibit, said Grade 10 student Will Burton, is helping fill in some of the blanks. “It is a very sad day,” he said.

Michelle Carver Martinez, a teacher at Uintah Elementary School, was at the exhibit Friday with her class of fourth graders. She had prepared them before the visit with discussions and more on 9/11. The lessons seemed to sink in, suggesting that the importance of the day was not fading.

“Their reaction is a lot of silence” and disbelief that someone could commit such acts, she said. “They really want to understand why.

Hundreds of volunteers helped organize the exhibit under the auspices of the Major Brent Taylor Foundation. Some 3,500 students were expected on field trips and organizers expected up to 6,000 visitors in total.

The exhibition was open to the public for three days on Thursday. More details are at majorbrenttaylor.com/ route.

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