ROANOKE, Va. – Wednesday marks 23 years since the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
An estimated 2,977 people died on that date including hundreds of first responders and military personnel.
To honor those lost, people gathered Saturday at the Wells Fargo Building for the tenth Roanoke 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb.
“Today, I sincerely hope you take away a sense of community, brotherhood and sisterhood and celebration of one of the greatest acts of heroism in recent history,” said Peter Matthiessen, the event’s coordinator.
Organizers said hundreds took part, including local first responders.
They climbed all 22 stories of the building five times to symbolize the 110 stories of the twin World Trade Center towers.
Everyone wore the tag of a firefighter or police officer killed on 9/11 to symbolically complete their mission.
“It’s a pretty heavy thing. if you take the time to think about it and look at the tag you’ve got hanging around your neck, it hits you pretty hard,” said Taylor Scharf, a firefighter with Roanoke County Fire & Rescue.
The event supports the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.
Matthiessen, a Roanoke Fire-EMS caption was recognized in by the VFW as the ‘National Firefighter of Year’ for his work on the annual event.