At noon Monday at the Wolf Law Building the CU Law Alumni Board and the School of Law held a remembrance ceremony to honor the victims of Sept. 11.
The ceremony took place in the north yard, and began with the Posting of the Colors by American Legion Post 111. David Getches, dean of the law school, led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance. Getches also explained the importance of this day.
“It is important to remind people who were not around what happened, and why it happened,” said Getches.
Following Getches’ speech, Steve Bosley and Michael Carrigan, members of the Board of Regents, and Boulder Fire Chief Larry Donner addressed the audience with words of hope and reflection.
“This allows us to set aside time to remember those who lost their lives,” said Donner.
Representatives spoke on behalf of Colorado senators Wayne Allard and Ken Salazar and Representative Mark Udall. Two student organization leaders, Lisa Lewis and Breckett Senter, also addressed the audience.
Proceeding was a moment of silence. Then, John Carson, a CU law graduate and member of the Law Alumni Board, who conceived the idea for the ceremony, explained the importance of the plaque that displays the names of 10 CU alumni who were victims of Sept. 11.
Carson drew specific attention to the phrase on the plaque, “Affirm the triumph of the human spirit.”
“This refers to what all of us should focus on, and what each of us can do,” he said.
Attending the ceremony were the family members of Christopher Faughnan and Allison Jones, both CU alumni who were victims of the Sept. 11 attacks. They led the crowd in singing “God Bless America.”
“The whole ceremony was very touching. Especially hearing from Chris’s brother,” said Lee McBeth, a Boulder resident.
The ceremony was concluded by Jennifer Smith, the chairwoman of the Law Alumni Board, who dedicated the plaque and read the 10 CU alumni victim’s names while white roses were placed on the plaque.
The plaque, as well as the ceremony, was significant for many attendees.
“My parents went to a memorial service in Broomfield yesterday that I could not attend. My uncle was Christopher Faughnan, so it was special to attend this ceremony because it was at his campus and he loved Boulder,” said freshman political science major Kyle Stines. “It was a unique experience to share together.”
Other people who weren’t directly affected by the attacks were still touched by the ceremony.
“It was very important for me to attend this ceremony because Sept. 11 was such a tragedy. It was important to just honor these people who died so unnecessarily. I hope somehow peace will come,” McBeth said.
The plaque can be found on the north yard of the Wolf Law Building overlooking the campus.
