Remembering September 11th: 25 Years Later at Tempe Town Lake's Healing Field

[

There are some dates that never lose their weight, no matter how many years pass. September 11th is one of those dates for me, and I know it is for so many of you too. This year marks 25 years since that terrible morning changed our country forever, and I wanted to take a moment away from real estate to talk about something that means a great deal to me and to so many people right here in the Valley: the Healing Field at Tempe Town Lake.

A Field of Flags, A Sea of Memories

If you've never walked through the Healing Field, it's hard to describe just how powerful it is until you're standing in the middle of it. Nearly 3,000 American flags are planted in careful rows at Tempe Beach Park, one for every single person who lost their life as a result of the attacks on September 11, 2001. Walking among them, you start to grasp the scale of what we lost that day — not as a number, but as thousands of individual lives, families, and futures.

This year, with it being the 25th anniversary, the Healing Field carries even more significance. A quarter of a century has passed, but the flags still stand as a quiet, powerful reminder that we don't forget.

What's Happening This Year

The Healing Field runs September 10th through the 14th this year, and there are several meaningful events taking place:

• Stand Up Flags Tribute – Thursday, September 10th at 5:46am, the exact time the flags begin to rise for the week
• Healing Field Tribute Ceremony – Friday, September 11th at 5:46am, marking the moment the first plane struck the North Tower, with a reading of the victims' names
• Candlelight Vigil – Friday, September 11th at 7:00pm, with speakers and candles placed at the base of the flags
• Freedom Concert – Saturday, September 12th from 6:30-8:30pm, featuring patriotic music in the park
• Tunnel to Towers 5k Run/Walk – Sunday, September 13th at 7:30am, honoring the firefighters, police officers, and first responders who ran toward danger
• Stand Down – Monday, September 14th at 6:00am, when the flags are respectfully taken down for another year

Every part of this week is put together by volunteers who believe, as I do, that remembering isn't optional. It's something we owe to the people who died and to the first responders who ran into those buildings while everyone else was running out.

Why This Matters

I've lived in Arizona for a long time, and I've watched this community show up year after year for the Healing Field. There's something about it that feels different from other memorials. Maybe it's because you can walk right up to the flags and read the names. Maybe it's because it's not tucked away — it's right there at Tempe Town Lake, in the middle of everyday life, reminding us that history isn't something that only happened somewhere else.

Twenty-five years is a long time. Long enough that some of the kids visiting the Healing Field this year weren't even born when it happened. That's exactly why events like this matter so much. It's how we pass down the memory — not just of the tragedy, but of the courage. The firefighters and police officers who ran up the stairs while everyone else ran down. The passengers on Flight 93 who fought back. The neighbors who showed up for each other in the days and weeks that followed.

If you have the chance this week, I'd encourage you to walk through the Healing Field yourself. Bring your kids. Read some of the names. Sit with it for a few minutes. It's a humbling experience, and one I think everyone in the Valley should have at least once.

Thank You to Those Who Serve

To every firefighter, police officer, paramedic, and member of our military reading this — thank you. Twenty-five years later, your service and sacrifice, and that of those who came before you, is not forgotten.

We will always remember.