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RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Maemae Elementary School second-grader Dianna Tran waved her flag with classmates yesterday during a school assembly marking the anniversary of the terrorist attacks.
Hawaii residents took time yesterday to remember. To remember the day a year ago that changed them, the day that changed America.
Prayer, song, silent tributes
Some observe day at Pearl Harbor
and rifle salutes help to salve
the islands' collective woundBy Mary Adamski and Diana Leone
madamski@starbulletin.com and dleone@starbulletin.comThey prayed, they sang, they cried.
They attended dozens of events across the state to honor the more than 3,000 people who died when terrorists crashed hijacked commercial jetliners into the World Trade Center in New York; into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.; and into a field in Pennsylvania.
Punchbowl Cemetery
Patriotism was the theme at the evening commemoration at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Punchbowl.
AYUMI NAKANISHI / ANAKANISHI@STARBULLETIN.COM
Members of Olana Ai Hula Halau danced for the Sept. 11th Commemoration, which attracted almost 2,000 people to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl.
Civilian representatives of different faiths participated, and there were Hawaii touches with hula, song and chanted pule, but the event had a distinct military air, complete with a three-round rifle volley, taps and roaring flyover by two Hawaii Air National Guard fighters.
Nearly all of the 2,000 chairs were filled. Flag-decorated clothing was popular among the casual civilians. Some people whose family members died in the Sept. 11 attacks were present, but they were not singled out for attention and sat among the crowd.
Adm. Thomas Fargo, commander in chief of Pacific forces, paid tribute to the people who died and the heroes who tried to rescue them.
Then much of his speech focused on the "global war on terrorism."
"The terrorists will not stop until we defeat them," Fargo said, "and we will not stop until our children can live without fear."
Navy Capt. Shumel Felzenberg used Psalm 5, which invokes God's help against the "watchful enemy. Their heart is treacherous ... let them fall for their evil schemes."
Hakim Ouansafi, a Honolulu Muslim, asked people to reflect on the last moments of the victims, "the strong helping the weak, comforting each other. They were black and white and every shade in between, supporting each other. It was human beings at their best. It is their legacy we celebrate today."
Kaneohe
As the sun set over the Koolau Mountains, veterans joined enlisted Navy and Marines and civilians at Marine Corps Base Hawaii to commemorate the victims of last year's attacks.
KEN IGE / KIGE@STARBULLETIN.COM
At left, the U.S. Marine Forces Pacific Band at Marine Corps Base Hawaii at Kaneohe performed around a replica of the famed Iwo Jima statue, calling to mind one of the bloodiest battles of World War II.
Base Commander Brig. Gen. J.C. McAbee pointed to the Iwo Jima statue behind him and said Marines stand ready to make the ultimate sacrifice for freedom if need be.
The outdoor event, attended by several hundred people, included the release of 21 white doves and a 21-gun salute.
Marine Sgt. Billy Eddy attended with his wife, Melissa, and son, William, who was born Sept. 2, 2001, while he was stationed in Okinawa.
Melissa Eddy recalled her feelings as a new mother, alone when the terrorists attacked. "I was feeling, 'Oh, my gosh, I just brought my son into this world -- I hope everything is going to be OK.'"
She said she feels more comfortable about the state of the world now, even though her husband, who is in artillery, could be sent to foreign shores again. Billy Eddy said he feels "proud that I can serve and protect my family by what I do."
Honolulu Hale
Unity was the theme during the remembrance ceremony at City Hall.
AYUMI NAKANISHI / ANAKANISHI@STARBULLETIN.COM
Honolulu police officers and firefighters carried flags and kahili in a colorful procession at Honolulu Hale.
Honolulu firefighters and policemen spoke of their bonding since Sept. 11, 2001.
"I've seen us get closer," Honolulu Police Officer Leroy Contee said after the ceremony attended by hundreds.
"Not only the Fire Department, but the EMS (ambulance) and the police, we all came closer," said Honolulu firefighter Dean Hakikawa.
Assistant Fire Chief Ken Word said, "There's more awareness of terrorism."
Contee noted that for the first time at yesterday's ceremony, there was a combined police and fire color guard.
"Society as a whole takes a lot of things for granted," Contee said, "but as long as we come together at the end for the same purpose (it works out)."
Officers saluted the flag as the color guard passed by. Several preschool and grade-school students from the Voyager Charter School followed suit.
AYUMI NAKANISHI / ANAKANISHI@STARBULLETIN.COM
Flower arrangements framed bagpipers at Honolulu Hale, where more than 400 people gathered for the Sept. 11 anniversary.
St. Andrew's Cathedral
"I hope we won't be trapped at Ground Zero," Episcopal Bishop Richard Chang told 100 attendees at a noon service at St. Andrew's Cathedral.
KEN IGE / KIGE@STARBULLETIN.COM
After the Solemn Requiem Eucharist at St. Andrew's Cathedral, Judy Coryell of Mokuleia took some time to walk the Labyrinth, where people meditate with slow, measured steps.
The country must not "be held captive by despair and revenge," he said.
"It's important for us to keep focused on the importance of our own healing ... and to look forward to the future.
"We must move forward even before all the terrorists are captured, even before Ground Zero is rebuilt, even before we know all the answers."
Chang cautioned that in American history, "events have been used as the vehicle to raise patriotic fervor ... as battle cries against an enemy. Events of tragedy have at times served to perpetuate more tragedy."
KEN IGE / KIGE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Students at Hawaii Baptist Academy spent the afternoon placing 366 crosses on a grassy hill on campus, spelling the word HOPE. Each cross bears the name of a firefighter or police officer killed on Sept. 11.
Kahala Mall
Flag-bedecked Kahala Mall was one of many commercial scenes where the governor's call for a moment of silence was observed.More than 200 employees, shoppers and coffee drinkers paused to hold hands in a circle for the un-programmed moment.
Some mall stores delayed opening to allow employees to attend, said marketing coordinator Jaydence Goya, who invited the crowd to "each reflect in our own way."
Many wore the "Remember- Rebuild-Support" button distributed by the mall.
"It was touching," said Ailean Lau, whose group of friends convenes every Wednesday for lunch at the mall.
Hilo
With "Amazing Grace" playing on his car's tape deck, Big Island Mayor Harry Kim drove through the dark, quiet streets of Hilo at 2:15 a.m. yesterday on his way to a candlelight memorial at Wailoa Center.
"You're alone with your thoughts. You feel things to a much higher degree," he said.
Expecting a bare handful of people, Kim discovered the small parking lot filled with cars and about 70 people, including families with small children.
Kim's mind went back to his thoughts on the day of the terrorist attacks. "I thought, Where do we go from here? We have to go on from here."
"Obviously, this is caused by extreme hatred, never mind from whom to whom. I resolved to do everything not to add to the hatred of mankind to mankind. I resolved to do everything I can to build trust and relationships."
CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
At Kawaiaha'o Church, part of a worldwide rolling requiem, Victoria Shiroma, at front, joined choir voices lifted in song.
Wailuku
More than 700 people attended "An Evening of Honor, Healing & Hope" at War Memorial Stadium.Leinaala Lono said she brought her family to honor those who died in the Sept. 11 attacks and to also explain to her children the impact of the tragedy.
Mary Perreira, of Haiku, said she was there to show support for those who put their lives on the line for the public.
"My son is in the Police Department," Perreira said. "A lot of people don't realize what it feels like when your kid is out there."
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
A candlelight vigil at the federal courthouse drew about 100 people, including, at left, Laura Mason, 16, Stephanie Seki, 16, and Michelle Broder Van Dyke, 17.
Lihue
On Kauai about 200 people -- many of them police and fire officials -- attended a patriotic "community gathering" at Kauai Community College.Mayor Maryanne Kusaka (who turned 67 yesterday) said that in the long run, last year's events "made us better as a nation, better as a community and better as individuals."
Aletha Kaohi, a kupuna from West Kauai, recalled how Kekaha first-graders brought in their pennies to send $416.25 to families of victims in New York.
"That's the kind of aloha we want Kauai to express," she said.
Star-Bulletin reporters Anthony Sommer, Rod Thompson and Gary T. Kubota contributed to this report.
AYUMI NAKANISHI / ANAKANISHI@STARBULLETIN.COM
In the courtyard of Momilani Elementary School, a gathering of more than 400 students, teachers and parents watched doves take flight. Also in the crowd were firefighters, police officers, doctors, nurses and a flight attendant associated with the Sept. 11 response.
AYUMI NAKANISHI / ANAKANISHI@STARBULLETIN.COM
Firefighters and Honolulu police officers saluted at attention for the City Hall ceremonies.
[ WE REMEMBER ]
