Members of Post 635 and 56 remember 9/11 during ceremony

Members of American Legion Post 635 and 56 folded an American Flag during a ceremony on Wednesday. (Photo courtesy: Blake Haas/WJBC)

By Blake Haas

BLOOMINGTON – On the footsteps of the McLean County Museum of History members of Post 635 and 56 Honor Guard honored almost 3,000 loves lost during the terrorist attacks in New York City, Washington D.C, and Pennsylvania.

During the ceremony members of the Honor Guard folded an American Flag, played taps, and one member played a rendition of Amazing Grace.

Event organizer and member of Honor Guard 635 Jerry Monical said the point of the ceremony was to remember the lives lost but also to inform the younger generation of what happened.

“So many of the younger people may not remember it, of course, we (Honor Guard) remember it,” added Monical. “We just want it to be fresh in everyone’s minds of what happened that day.”

Members of the American Legion spoke during a ceremony in front of the McLean County Museum of History. (Photo courtesy: Blake Haas/WJBC)

Speaking with WJBC’s Scott Miller and Katherine Murphy, Illinois Gov. Pritzker said 9/11 is a day of remembrance.

“It’s an important day for us to commemorate those that were lost of course, and to make sure that people remember,” Pritzker said Wednesday morning on the Scott Miller Show. “We are in an era when we need to stand up against the terrorist and make sure that we are retaining our values as Americans.”

Blake Haas can be reached at [email protected].

Blogs

Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all

By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year.  It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …

Is federal mobilization the answer?

By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city.   Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…

In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans

By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…

Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life

Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University.   We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk.  Going to work every day for some people means…