sally jewell and members of the pennsylvania delegation. today, ofs ago course, american history changed. in this humble field here near shanksville, the united states pentagon, the twin towers and in every single hard in americans here and abroad. today and every day, we remember september 11, 2001. first i want to acknowledge the families of the 40 gathered here today and the thousands of other family members who lost. none of us would want to trade places with you, but we honor your sacrifice and those that do their lives for the rest of us. we are gathered today among

friends and neighbors, visitors, and dedicated public servants to join in remember. i want to give a particular thanks to the public servants, steve in jeff who are the superintendents of this marvelous new park site. to the men and women who wear the green and grey of the park service who tell america's stories. the painful, joyful, and those that help us paint a brighter picture by learning from the lessons of the past. also, our elected officials. you have difficult jobs. you are on the iron . we are an election season and we know that is difficult. the same to governor wolf. couldorry governor will not be here, here is with his family where he needs to be. we could not have this beautiful, appropriate remembrance without our partners. a family members led by reverend

felton did such great work helping us work on land acquisition, planning and designing the memorial and understanding the family for spec of so important to incorporate throughout. 93, people of flight who are long-term partners of the national park service assisted with fundraising, programming, marketing, organizing volunteers. i want to give a particular shout out to the volunteers. we could not operate the facility or tell the story without you. to those who give their times and treasure, the families and friends of flight 93, please join me in giving a thank you to them. [applause] >> i also want to recognize the couldising to development not happened without the national park foundation. think you very much, national park foundation. certainly the men and women of

flight 93 had no way to know they would be our nation's heroes and heroin's or the they would lay down their lives for the nation on that day. or for someone else's nation as in the case for a number. but we come together as their champions because their actions saved the lives of untold numbers of people. i know for those of you who were old enough to remember that day, we all know where we were. i was in alaska on the last of a business trip about to head home and like so many of us who found ways to understand, to find solace. i found solace in nature, the great outdoors in the company of people i do not know and people i did. but all i got to know better. last week i saw a brand-new musical that is about to play in new york come the spring but it just open a washington, tc it is a wonderful, poignant

musical about how people came together in small towns and newfoundland as their planes were diverted from all over the world. in how great reflection that day we saw the worst of humankind and the rest of humankind. where we arehis, today, where we have the opportunity to reflect but also to rekindle our patriotism and what we stand for as a nation and as human beings. i have had the honor of anticipating in the annual memorial observance twice before today. in 2013, my first air on the job, i joined in the evening somber walk with luminarias and in the morning, the tolling of the bills. the groundbreaking of this visitor center. we did not break ground, we also put stakes of the memorial.

the flight path of flight 93. it was very powerful. then the opening of this facility that has no welcomed hundreds of thousands of people who passed through to better understand what happened that fateful day. to try to make sense of the tremendous loss. theemember it reflect on bravery, courage, and sacrifice of the 40 passengers and crew. so far, we have had nearly 400,000 visitors just this year. over 120,000 individuals, many of you in the audience opened your check asked to donate to build this memorial and many people return to see the new exhibits and were emotionally moved by the stories. your stories. what a testament to the lives and legacy of the passengers and crew of flight 93 that so many came to pay their respects.

in their own words, visitors have shared their reflections. i would like to share a few of them with you. many of them put into context what we always struggled to grasp or perhaps even understand. one person says, united we stood so we could live. you have shown that normal, ordinary people can be true heroes. i touched every day on the wall like it was touching them the way they touched me with their love and courage. sec. jewell: one of the most striking, by a visitor who has no memory of the holiness attacks, but proves the vote on of the sacrifice, that speaks to that got upgsters here at two in the morning or 3:00 in the morning to drive

appear, this from a 17-year-old. you have done a completely selfless act for the good of our nation. at thenly two years old time, so i do not remember it happening, but that does not mean i have forgotten what you did. thank you so much for your sacrifice. he will be rewarded in heaven for your courageous deeds. god bless america. rest in peace. these thoughts through that this truly is a moving the memorial to everyday citizens who came face-to-face with evil, but through courage and saved untold lives and protected another sacred and symbolic american site, the u.s. capitol. this is the final resting place, but also a place for a star on her what they have given -- for us to honor what they have given us, the last full measure of

devotion when president lincoln stood on another pennsylvania field not too long from here. all of us here will never forget the tragic day. we must demolish the growing number of americans like my own grandchildren who have no direct memories of these attacks. as mike said, the national park service is charged with interpreting moments and people like this for future generations and to ensure that parks are relevant to all americans, especially now, as the park service enters it second gear of your service. national park parks are absolutely american, absolutely democratic. they reflect us at our best, rather than our worst. he could just have easily been referring to the passengers and crew of flight 93, for we know that when confronted with unspeakable realization of their situation, those 40 men and

women formed a plan ended the most democratic thing imaginable. they voted before deciding to carry it out. national parks preserve what is best about our country, including the foundations of the democracy on which our nation was established. from places like independent, philadelphia, to seneca falls, and flight 93. americans 413 national park units we've and bind together the diverse -- weave and bind together the diverse cultures that make up our national stories. the heroes understood that the collective strength of our thatn is found in a creed is as old as the founding of -- eca itself, the tourism unum, that out of many,

we are one. [applause] sec. jewell: thank you. theell, the president of families of flight 93, as was mentioned by mike. his brother died on that day. he has worked tirelessly to make sure the voices of the family are heard and reflected in the visits here. he's day job with his wife donna is supporting a camp that autistic children. i have known him since 2013. he is a true champion for this site and for everything that the heroes and heroines of flight 93 demonstrated are the best in humanity. join me in a welcome for the president of families of flight 93, gordy phelps.

>> good morning. regional director caldwell, secretary jewell, senator casey, reverend britain,, was friends,r, families, so many wonderful people i see in front of me today. community members and all of you who have taken time to join us today and commemorate the 15th anniversary of september 11, 2001, i welcome gratitude.er you my i offer my gratitude to you for actively remembering our losses, the individuals, the collective gratitudeactions, remembering m and life-changing events that unfolded here on the hallowed ground of the flight 93 national

memorial as well as in new york and at the pentagon. with each year, we have seems beautiful memorial rise before our very eyes, growing from a few bales of hay on yonder hill, that serves as the beginning of our temporary memorial to the development of our sacred ground , the wall of names, the visitors and learning centers, the pedestrian bridge, and all the aspect of our memorial designed that stand before us today. our final design aspect to be voicesed is the tower of that will stand at the entrance to this memorial, a 93 foot tall tower containing 40 windchimes that will represent the voices of our loved ones standing proudly and the family to be seen by all who enter this historic site. we look forward to the day in

2018 when we can dedicate this tower and be able to say we have done our best to create a proper memorial in which future generations of visitors can learn about the 40 unique heroes that helped change the course of history on that dark morning 15 years ago today. is about so much more than the surrounding structures. our losses, and yet effective september 11 on our lives. where we canme devote our entire and collective consciousness to remember the 40 passengers and crew members of united flight 93. most of us do not need marble walls, a power of wind times, or a visitors center to remind us of the sacrifice made here 15 years ago. the local immunity of shanksville and surrounding communities of somerset county

do not need to be reminded of how their lives were and continue to be affected by september 11. many politicians in washington, d.c. do not need to be reminded that were it not for the actions of our 40 heroes, their lives, in the course of our country's future, would have been more drastically altered that day. , we embraced the memory of each and every one of the 40 brave heroes for as long as we live, as long as we remember, their spirits live in this sacred ground, and in our hearts. these structures and design aspects are not for us. they are for those that have forgotten. they are for tomorrow's children , so that the events of september 11, 2001 are not lost to history. it is important that we embrace the lessons learned on that day, and take time to record a factual accounting of the event

here at the flight 93 national memorial, that unfolded before many of our eyes that morning. time will eventually erode all emotional connections to september 11, and if there is nothing left to remember beyond emotion, there is nothing left to remember. please, do not let september 11 become just another day. i fear the date at september 11 is acknowledged on the nearest monday, providing a long weekend and excuse for autumnal picnic to fight to remember. let your remembrance of guide how you conduct yourself in everyday lives. tell stories of september 11 and encouraging new generation to learn about that day. braver, bebe stronger, be more willing to stand against tyranny. remember the lessons we learned on september 11 that as a

community, as a country, as a world, we stand stronger together rather than as individuals. thank you. [applause] ♪ playing] [choir singing]

♪ ♪

[applause] >> and let me first think the choir for those words. they give us comfort and hope. our country is blessed by their talent. , gordon felt,in and all the families of flight 93 who are here, secretary

jewell, michael caldwell and all at the national parks service, senator to me, congressman schuster, cardinal miller, tom mcmillan, and the choir. togather at this sacred site do a number of things. of course we gather to remember and to express gratitude. we certainly gather to mourn and we hope to comfort. we are reminded of those words from the beatitudes. sen. casey: blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted. we hope today, we can provide a measure of comfort. of course, part of today is to pay tribute, to pay tribute to those 40 americans, remarkable .eople, that we remember today

so we gather to pay tribute to them, but also to draw andiration from their lives certainly from their actions on .hat horrible day in this place it is very difficult to come up with the right words, sometimes you have to turn to scripture, and sometimes to prayer and to hymns. the choir as we were coming in today, was singing "america the beautiful," that great anthem that says in pertinent part, provedautiful for heroes in liberating strife, who more than self their country loved, who more than self their country loved." what a great description, maybe the best description of their actions on that day. of course, the hymns goes on to

say, "o beautiful for patriot dream that sees beyond the years ," there may not be a better word to describe those 40 americans than that able word hour,ot," because in that they had to prove themselves to patriots. we all hope we can do the same. i am not sure that i could. in that hour of horror, they like so many generations of americans before them on battlefields across the world, indeed on battlefields here in theynited states, but acted to save the lives of others, people they did not know, people they would never meet, people may be that the families would never know or ever meet.

it let us remember those patriots -- so let us remember those patriots who did see beyond the years to a better day, to a day when others would not be so threatened by the horror of terrorism. .n this day, we pray for them we pray for their families, of course. and we pray for our families, day, in apecial special way on a day like today, we pray for ourselves, too, that we may be worthy of their valor. thank you very much. [applause] sen. casey: now, i want to introduce to you might call it, senator pat toomey. [applause] senator casey. the members of the park service, special acknowledgment and

thanks to the people of flight 93. i honored to be in the presence of the family and friends of the heroes of flight 93. part of the story of september 11, 2001, of course, is a story brutalness, of the most and degraded aspects of humanity and the many innocent lives lost at the hands of terrorists. sen. toomey: but in the face of that darkness, september 11 also reminds us of the best of humanity. the heroes who were all around us on that day. americans who performed extraordinary acts of valor and self-sacrifice. we remember the first responders who ran up the stairs in the world trade center to save lives and to enable other people to run down. we remember the military and civilian employees at the pentagon who rescued their colleagues from the burning

debris, and of course, the 40 passengers and crew members of andht 93, who died here sacrificed their lives to save an unknown number of others. so this place, this memorial, their heroism, the memory, are all very personal for me and my family. like many, i believe that the target of flight 93 was the u.s. capitol. i was working in the capitol as a member of congress that day. it is entirely possible that heroes of the flight 93, i was able to go home to my family, my wife was spared being widowed, our two older children grew up with their and our youngest was able to be born. find will never be able to

the words to adequately express the appreciation that we have to the 40 heroes of flight 93, but part be can do is do our to keep the memory alive. this, have a duty to do for this and future generations, to remember both the evil that killed nearly 3000 people, but also the virtuous mess and bravery that saved us so many ss and braveryusne that saved so many more. ago, our kids were here for the groundbreaking of the beautiful fetters -- visitors center. the visitor conflict would be built. this is one small way we can do our part to remember the

important history that occurred here. as much or maybe more than any other state, the grounds of pennsylvania have been hallowed by critical moments in american history, fort necessity, valley forge, gettysburg, and 15 years ago today, in this field, history was made again. our state is the birthplace of heroes. it is the final resting place of heroes. our country in the world, -- our country and the world are safer because of them. the passengers and crew of flight 93 are among our heroes right here in pennsylvania. god bless the souls and the memory of those brave americans, and god bless america. thank you. [applause] sen. toomey: it is now my pleasure to introduce congressman bill shuster. [applause] >> thank you.

families of flight 93, secretary jewell, all the members of the park service, reverend britt, for me, it is truly an honor to be here today with you. as always, as i visit shanksville, i am humbled to be standing at this spot. today was a day of remembrance, of the 40 and their heroic act of stopping an attack on our capital. they were the first onnterattack on the war terror, and we should always remember and honor them for what they did that day and those hours. we must resolve to on terror, and we should always remember and honor never ever let this happen again in our country. rep. shuster: on september 11, i complex incapitol washington, where we believe flight 93 was headed for the capitol, and so the 40

passengers and crew will forever hold a personal meaning for me and my family. we have created a beautiful and appropriate national memorial here, so it looks quite different than it has in the past with the open fields that were here in the past anniversaries, but it is a beautiful memorial to remember. things in our nation have changed in the last 15 years, but i believe if you have not. the first is, we have not forgotten. across america today, people are holding ceremonies like this, remembering 9/11 and what happened to our nation. the other thing that has not changed his i believe that we still have our hope. i know we still have it. hope for a more peaceful world, hope for a united states which i believe is the greatest nation in the history of the world, and

we need to hold onto that and keep the faith, for as and if as one actor says, "hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies." i am honored to be here with you today. thank you. god bless the family's of the 40, and may god continue to bless the united states of america. thank you. [applause] >> the newark boys chorus has provided us with before and touching music for today's program. they sound wonderful. please give them a round of applause. [applause] >> absolutely beautiful. thank you all for joining us today and helping us honor the

memory of passengers and crew of flight 93. the visitors center will open to the public at noon and you are invited to join us at the memorial plaza at 12:40 p.m. for wall ofram at the names. ladies and gentlemen, please stand while the u.s. navy ceremonial guard retires the colors. once they have been retired, please be seated to allow family members to enter the visitors center. think, i may have skipped a musical number. [laughter] >> ok. that is two years and a row i think i have done that. we will do a musical number and colors.ire the thank you.

>> we will get this right. once you tell the navy to go, they go. [laughter] >> we will now actually have a closing music provided by the newark boys course. give us hope and then come and sing and remember me wherever you go. thank you very much. ♪ piano playing] [chorus singing] [applause]

>> now, the new york city observance of the 15th anniversary of the september 11 terror attacks. on hand were state and local officials and presidential candidates donald trump and hillary clinton. mrs. clinton left the event early. her campaign issued separate statement saying she had been diagnosed with pneumonia on friday and became overheated and hy