Aside from the marching footsteps of the color guard, there was utter silence as the students and faculty members of the DMAE campus rose in solidarity to respect the people whose lives ended on September 11, 2001. They marched past the thousands of red, white and blue paper-linked chains, which were strung around the auditorium, representing the fallen.

Twelve years ago, the World Trade Center in New York City fell down into rubble after two hijacked airplanes crashed into the buildings.

The terrorist group Al-Qaeda hijacked four American airplanes, two of which flew into the towers and consequently killed 2,606 innocent people.

More than 200 people were killed by the third airplane that crashed into the Pentagon Building in Washington D.C. The Capitol Building was next, but Americans on the hijacked airplane, Flight 93, helped to curb the attack by crashing into a field in Pennsylvania.

To pay tribute to the many who lost their lives in  this tragic event, the DMAE community held its third annual assembly on Sept. 11, 2013, second and third period for the students.

Ms. Judy Aronson has been in charge of preparing for the assembly since 2011. Since then, the program has gained broader and  more wide spread support. She is happy that more kids are getting involved, whether it be a large or small role.

“I personally helped in preparing for the assembly because I wanted to help people remember and also realize that 9/11 was a moment when everyone in America became one in solidarity with those who fell,” senior Soindos Abdah said.

The assembly consisted of short videos of the Diversity Day elective students’ visit to the 9/11 memorial Ground Zero, presentation of students’ artwork, teachers’ recollection of that day as well as a solo performance by senior Fabiola Zapata.

Most agree that the highlight was watching the short videos that made many teary-eyed. Others were more moved by Ms. Laura Satterfield and Ms. Liz Corsini’s personal recollection of the event.

“It was really powerful having someone speak live about the event. It was powerful in a different way,” Ms. Aronson asserted.

Junior Arthi Rameshkumar enjoyed the many artwork present.

“I really liked the powerful symbolism behind the murals and the the 3,000 links of chain representing the people who died that day,” Arthi said.

Despite the mark this tragedy left on our nation, many students who were not old enough to understand it during that time, are unaware of it. Therefore, this assembly helped to not only educate underclassmen but also people who are new to the country.

“I hoped to remind each other as a community that we shouldn’t let 9/11 fall aside and keep the reference to 2001 alive,” Ms. Aronson stated. ”Most schools don’t do anything and few even do morning announcements.”

However, to reform this apathy, some neighboring towns have praised our school’s initiative. There were even a couple of school representatives at the assembly to see which aspects of DMAE’s 9/11 assembly they could adopt in their own schools.

Ms. Aronson intends on keeping the memory alive, and she looks forward to next year’s assembly, which she hopes to improve by beginning to prepare as early as spring.