Hundreds gathered in Grapevine as the sun rose Saturday to remember the lives lost on one of America’s darkest days.
Community members, including uniformed flight attendants and pilots, came together at the 9/11 Flight Crew Memorial to honor the victims of Sept. 11, 2001.
“Today, for me as a flight crew member, is a moment we’ll never forget,” said Erik Harris, national treasurer for the Association of Professional Flight Attendants.
American Airlines’ first ever female captain, Beverley Bass, recalled her flight from Paris to Dallas on 9/11.
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“We were just over the middle of the North Atlantic when we got word on our aircraft radios that one of the towers had been hit,” Bass said.
During the gathering, attendees paused for moments of silence for the people who were killed, their families and first responders.
Valerie Thompson, founder of the 9/11 Flight Crew Memorial Foundation, was a flight attendant with American Airlines for 24 years.
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Thompson's late husband, Dean Thompson, created the 9/11 memorial sculpture, where Saturday's ceremony was held. The memorial is dedicated to the 33 flight crew members who died in the attacks, and airline industry professionals.
“The heartwarming thing is that we see everyone and it’s a respectful remembrance for all of us, and a historical one too,” she said.
