By: Ekene Ezeh

Staff Writer

On September 25th, students in Ms. DuPuis Video Production class, Ms. Lovaas’ AP US History class and Mr Livieratos’ AP Government class, are going to the Flight 93 memorial in Somerset County, Pennsylvania. On September 11th, 2001 the passengers on Flight 93 crashed the plane in a field in Pennsylvania. The terrorists hijacked the plane with the intention of crashing the flight into building. The target of the plane was unknown. To honor the bravery of the passengers, a memorial was built on the sight of crash. On September 24th, 2002, congress passed the Flight 93 National Memorial Act. To ensure that the Flight 93 memorial would be built Congress passed this act.

9:11

Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The memorial is very important for students to go see. Many students today grow up in a post 9/11 world and they don’t know what happened. Ms. Lovass agreed with this point saying, “At this point, my students were either newborns or not alive during September 11, 2001. When we discuss 9/11 in class, to many, it is a historical event.”

Many students today don’t have a personal connection to 9/11. Most students were not born when the attacks took place. So when 9/11 comes up in class many people just look at it like date on a timeline. But 9/11 is bigger than just a date. But what is even bigger are the passengers on Flight 93. It is a story of heroism that many people don’t get to hear. “Many students have had the ability to visit the New York memorials,” Ms. Lovaas said, “but not this memorial, even though it’s closer.” Students don’t truly hear the story of Flight 93 the way they hear the other stories about 9/11. Because of this students tend to not understand courage that these passengers had during the attacks. They don’t seem to have a full understanding of the bravery and the impact Flight 93 has on them today. But this field trip can give students a greater appreciation for the passengers and how they have affected their lives today.

9/11 may have happened eighteen years ago, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t remember those who have fallen in during 9/11. There are many ways that we as community can honor those who died during 9/11. The Flight 93 memorial field trip is one way that the men and women who died in the terrorist attacks can be honored. When asked how the victims can be honored Ms. Lovaas suggested,  “I think all people can look at what happened on Flight 93 and be inspired to make small changes in their everyday life:” She said, “small acts of kindness can go a long way to honor those who gave their lives to ensure other people were saved.” Treating others with kindness will go a long way to making our world better. If we treat people around us with respect and dignity we can not only honor the people who died in 9/11 but, prevent another attack of that magnitude from happening again.