Students, first responders and community members participated in the annual memorial stair run at Kenan Memorial Stadium on Wednesday morning to honor and commemorate those who lost their lives in the Sept. 11 terrorist attack.
Despite the early start time at 5:40 a.m., hundreds of people attended what Lt. Col. Dan Snow, a professor of military science, called a run of “reflection and remembrance."
Participants climbed 2,076 steps of the stadium to symbolize the steps first responders took to rescue civilians in each of the towers attacked in the World Trade Center.
For the past six years, the event has grown annually. The trend continued with attendance being the largest to date this year.
The UNC Army ROTC, which hosted the event, reached out to local fitness groups and the Chapel Hill and Carrboro police and fire departments to attract community involvement. They also increased campus recruiting this year by promoting the event in the Pit, posting on social media platforms and reaching out the UNC Panhellenic Society and athletic teams.
Taylor Hughes, a senior in Army ROTC, was the primary organizer of the event.
“People remember 9/11, like usually there’s a couple of things posted on social media on 9/11, but there’s not really a lot of doing something active to remember those who were involved," Hughes said. "I think for that reason, it's really cool for a lot of people to come out."
The memorial run began with brief opening remarks by Snow. He shared how he was personally impacted by the events of 9/11 as his cousin, Fred Rimmele, was aboard United Airlines Flight 175 that crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center.
“Your presence today to honor and reflect on the loss of Fred and so many others that day — victims who were strangers to you — is uplifting and inspiring,” Snow said to the crowd.