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Sarah Finnegan
Members of the Mountain Brook and Vestavia Hills Fire Department hang the American flag in preparation for the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
A member of the Mountain Brook Fire Department adjusts the rope securing the American flag to a ladder in preparation for the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Retired Army officer and Hoover American Legion Commander Ron Bradstreet attends the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Mountain Brook Mayor Terry Oden opens the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Members of the Mountain Brook, Vestavia Hills and Homewood police departments attended the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Lt. Brent Cooper of the Mountain Brook Fire Department gives the invocation at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Members of the Mountain Brook, Vestavia Hills and Homewood police and fire departments remove their hats for the invocation at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
The Homewood Police Department Honor Guard perform the posting of the colors during the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Members of the Mountain Brook, Vestavia Hills and Homewood police and fire departments salute the flag during the national anthem at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Homewood Mayor Scott McBrayer speaks at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Battalion Chief Patrick Dean of the Mountain Brook Fire Department rings the bell in remembrance of those who were affected by the attacks on 9/11 at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
From left, AO Gary Noah, Sgt Drew Evans, Sgt Tim Mari and Janet Forbes surround the 9/11 memorial during the wreath laying at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al. Each represented the members of the fire departments, police officers, military members and civilians who were affected by the attacks of 9/11.
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Sarah Finnegan
Homewood Fire Department member Brian Bowman performs on the bagpipes at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Keynote speaker Rear Admiral John Netter, United States Navy retiree, speaks at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
From left, Sgt Tim Mari, Sgt Drew Evans, AO Gary Noah and Janet Forbes sit in front of the 9/11 memorial at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al. They each represented the members of the military, police forces, fire departments and civilians respectively in remembrance of those who were affected by the attack on 9/11.
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Sarah Finnegan
Members of the Vestavia Hills Fire Department attend the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Mountain Brook Police Chief Ted Cook speaks at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Mountain Brook Police Chief Ted Cook recognizes and thanks Mountain Brook Major Terry Oden at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Vestavia Hills Mayor Alberto Zaragoza speaks at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
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Sarah Finnegan
Rabbi Yossi Friedman gives the closing prayer at the Patriot Day ceremony on September 11, 2016 in Crestline Village of Mountain Brook, Al.
Fifteen years after the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001, residents of Homewood, Vestavia Hills and Mountain Brook came together Sunday to remember the lives lost on that day.
Patriot Day took place outside the Crestline fire station, next to the 9/11 memorial, a 1,305-pound H-beam from the World Trade Center that was dedicated in 2013. The ceremony included a wreath-laying, a bell ceremony and a moment of silence at the time the planes struck the World Trade Center in 2001.
A large U.S. flag hung over the crowd as retired Navy Rear Admiral John T. (Jack) Natter spoke, reflecting on the day and how the nation has memorialized those tragic events ever since.
Events like 9/11 are important “because they had an impact on our history, our lives, our children and our future,” Natter said in an interview prior to Patriot Day. “They impact how we go forward. Hopefully, we learn from some of these incidents and they will never be repeated.”
