BROCKPORT, N.Y. — The Brockport Fire Department and the Volunteer Firefighters Association held a day-long remembrance ceremony on Wednesday to honor the thousands of victims and hundreds of fallen heroes who lost their lives on 9/11.

The vigil at the fire district’s Station 4 was followed by a ceremony at the 9/11 memorial, which was at the center of everyone’s hearts and minds. There were dozens of flags, firefighters, neighbors, speakers and lots of prayers.

Cheryl Babcock’s husband was a firefighter at the time of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, when hijacked planes smashed into both towers of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and a fourth went down in a Pennsylvania field.

“He was in 9/11 right as one of the towers — well, the third tower, I believe — was going down across the Tappan Zee Bridge. He lost some people that were dear to him that day so this is his way of paying his respects,” she said.

Jessie, a local firefighter, was sent to New York City to help with recovery after the attacks. “Looking at the list of firefighters lost, it was very hard. I lost a lot of good friends,” he said.

The pain still runs deep for Jessie, who has since retired. He says there were 343 firefighters who lost their lives on 9/11, and the number of firefighters who died of illness as a result of recovery and rescue has surpassed that number. Jessie lost 12 of his firefighter buddies.

“From cancer that were at ground zero including my boss, my last boss from the state. It’s tough every day,” Jessie said.

With the support of his wife Cheryl, the brotherhood of firefighters, and coming to this memorial every year helps him cope. “This is a special place where we can come and remember and honor,” Cheryl said.

Firefighters in Brockport say they will continue and are committed to holding a ceremony for those who lost their lives on 9/11.

Christopher Martin, public information officer for the fire district, noted that the station’s location means that anyone coming to Brockport sees the memorial. He said the district has done the vigil ever Sept. 11 since the first year after the attacks.

“Anybody who comes to the village, anybody who comes to SUNY Brockport to visit with their child – the kid probably doesn’t remember 9/11, but the parents do,” Martin said. “And anything we can do to keep the memory of that alive – I think it was Roosevelt who said, ‘If we remember, we will not repeat.’ And we don’t want to repeat the loss of 343 lives.”

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