TAMPA, Fla. — Seventeen years after the nation reeled following the September 11th terror attacks, the pain is still fresh for some first responders.
- Day of Remembrance ceremony held in Veterans Memorial Park
- Some in attendance lost relatives in attack, others helped with search and recovery
- Tampa Fire Rescue Lt. Roger Picard: "We absolutely cannot forget"
"As I sat over here in this building and took my phone out, the number '9-11' came up again," said Lt. Roger Picard with Tampa Fire Rescue. "It's tough. It's tough. You don't forget it."
Picard took part in search and recovery efforts at Ground Zero in the aftermath of the attacks. His team recovered 10 fallen first responders.
"After that, I came home and I had survivor's guilt," he said. "I felt like maybe I haven't done enough. So I started looking into 'What can I do to honor those people that did lose their lives?""
Picard started attending Patriot Day of Remembrance ceremonies like the one held at Veterans Memorial Park in Tampa Tuesday on the anniversary of the September 11th attacks. About two dozen people were present at this year's event.
"There is an entire generation, including my youngest son, who only know the history of this story from the history books," said Hillsborough County Fire Rescue Chief Dennis Jones. "We must make sure that they know the full story of what occurred on 9-11-2001."
Some in attendance lost relatives on that fateful day. Hillsborough County Firefighter Brian Muldowney led the traditional Bell Ceremony in honor of his brother Richard, a New York City firefighter who died in the attacks.
Muldowney declined to speak with reporters about his brother or his participation in the ceremony.
U.S. Central Command Chaplin Eric Albertson said it's important not to lose hope in humanity despite tragedy.
"Even though there is tragedy in the world, good can often come from it," Albertson said. "And we did see tremendous bravery after 9/11."
That bravery, Picard says, must continue to be acknowledged
"Seventeen years. We can't forget," he said. "We absolutely cannot forget."