Town Meeting Commemorates 9/11
While many of our students don’t necessarily remember the events that occurred on 9/11, the community came together for a special Town Meeting to commemorate the anniversary of the historic day. Clara Pitt ’18, who delivered the Senior Sermon that day, noted that she didn’t want to talk about the tragedy of those terrorist attacks but rather, wanted to discuss the way that people came together after the tragic events and how strangers reached out to help each other.
Pitt posed the question, “How can we best understand and approach strangers?” Citing the Torah, she reminded us that we must welcome the stranger, and commands for us to “love him as yourself.” Just as the 9/11 community of responders opened their hearts and applied the commandment of loving those we do not know, Pitt urged students to, “make an effort to walk with confidence into the unknown, and reach out to a stranger.”
Pitt posed the question, “How can we best understand and approach strangers?” Citing the Torah, she reminded us that we must welcome the stranger, and commands for us to “love him as yourself.” Just as the 9/11 community of responders opened their hearts and applied the commandment of loving those we do not know, Pitt urged students to, “make an effort to walk with confidence into the unknown, and reach out to a stranger.”
Caren Heller, the chair of the performing arts department, shared her own emotional story of living in New York City during the events of 9/11 and losing friends in the attacks. Students also viewed a powerful video that detailed the events of the day and the horrific aftermath that so profoundly affected our nation.
The voices of students who were personally affected by these attacks were represented by Liam Sherman ’19 and Michael Bochkur Dratver ’19, who read two poignant poems. “We’re Still Standing,” was written by a 7th-grade student at the time of the attacks, and “List of ‘Don’t Forgets’ and ‘Remembers,’” was a piece composed by students in a New York City classroom whose teacher lost a relative in the attacks.
A moment of silence to remember the victims concluded with the blowing of the shofar by Rabbi David Saiger. The victims of the attacks were remembered vividly through a memorial set up around the gym, which featured photos and stories. Everyone attending the Town Meeting was given a sticker with the name of a victim, corresponding to the stories, which adorned the walls.
During lunch time, in the amphitheater, students had the opportunity to reflect and silently read from a notebook listing the names of the victims. A yahrzeit candle flickered beside it in memory of those who lost their lives.
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