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Patriot Day Message From Sheriff Groves

 

Patriot Day... The anniversary of one of the darkest days in United States history.  A day when thousands of people who were moms, dads, sons and daughters, went to work only to be brutally murdered by cowardly terrorists who intentionally flew jets - also filled with innocent people - into symbolic American Institutions. 

While September 11, 2001 was unquestionably a day of tragic sadness, it was also a day when heroes were born.  Travelers aboard Flight 93 overpowered armed terrorists knowing their deaths were imminent but also knowing their courageous actions could save innocent lives on the ground. In buildings of mangled steel and concrete, people risked their own safety to help their co-workers flee an unimaginably dangerous and chaotic scene.

Police Officers, Firefighters and Port Authority Officers all rushed into the burning, smoke filled and structurally unstable buildings to rescue absolute strangers, knowing full well with each trip inside that they would likely not survive or see their families again, but every second mattered, every life mattered.

Young men and women went to military recruiting stations to join the armed forces determined to bring the wrath of the United States to those who brought evil to our homeland.  Brave Veterans who had already served and left the military looked for opportunities to re-join or support our country in other ways.

The people of this nation - regardless of economic status, political affiliation, race, or any of the other classifications usually used to cause division among us - came together as one people, one nation. 

Along with sadness, out of the tragedy emerged a heart swelling patriotic pride in the United States.  That overwhelming patriotism was not only evident in large cities and small rural communities across our country, but transcended our borders with the world showing support and sharing in our grief.

While I certainly think of the innocent lives lost and all the families impacted and shattered by that horrific act of evil, it's the heroes - those who wore a badge and those who were going about their morning and found themselves in a position to rise up, muster the strength and the courage to save a strangers life - that I am so thankful for.

It's the memory of how we, the citizens of the United States, came together by putting differences aside, helping one another,  being genuinely kind, supporting one another, having pride in our country and uniting as a nation which gives me hope that as we observe Patriot Day we can experience that same sense of togetherness and patriotism again. 

Romans 12:21 "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

May God Bless all of you and our country.

Sheriff David M. Groves

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