Mayor Adrian Fenty has declared Sept. 11 as Patriot Day in D.C., urging all residents to memorialize the terrorist attacks of six years ago “by engaging in acts of community service or other good deeds.”
The local event will be held in conjunction with national Patriot Day, a day of remembrance adopted by Congress and President Bush in 2001 soon after terrorists crashed planes into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania. Congress issued a later proclamation urging U.S. citizens to observe Patriot Day through acts of voluntary service, compassion and charity.
Sept. 11, 2001, “instantly transformed nearly everyone’s lives, and will never, and should never be just another day in the hearts and minds of all Americans,” Fenty writes in the proclamation, issued Aug. 29. At least 11 D.C. residents died that day, including three 11-year-old D.C. school students who were on a flight to California sponsored by the National Geographic Society that was crashed into the Pentagon: Bernard Brown II, Asia Cottom and Rodney Dickens.
Residents interested in volunteering Sept. 11 should have no problem finding a need.
Visit serve.dc.gov, 1800volunteer.org or greaterdccares.com for ideas.
“There is no lack of things to do,” said Dy Brown, spokeswoman for Serve DC, a District government agency that coordinates volunteer efforts.
September also is National Preparedness Month, which Fenty will kick off Thursday during a pep rally at Anne Beers Elementary School, 3600 Alabama Ave. SE. The government is planning a series of events to urge citizens to prepare for emergencies in their homes, businesses and communities.
