A crowd including students, faculty, and local law enforcement filled the quad with 2,977 flags on Monday to commemorate those who lost their lives 22 years ago on 9/11.

Associate Dean of Men Jeffery “Chief” Rogers said he organized the event because of the promise Americans made to never forget 9/11.

“We made a promise, and we never forget our promises,” Rogers said. “Promises made, promises kept.”

This was the first year the 9/11 memorial ceremony involved individual participation. In the past, organizers have placed flags around the Civil War statue and invited the public to attend a memorial ceremony, but Rogers said he designed this year’s event to encourage reflection.

“This allowed more students to participate in that they got to place the flags and they got to do it in front of them and they can reflect as they were doing it,” Rogers said. “We did not have a speech, but this is a solemn way of remembering them.”

Each flag represented a life that was lost in the terrorist attacks.

During the ceremony, individuals lined up in rows to place flags within a defined outline. As a row reached the front, an organizer gave a signal and people in the row staked their flags simultaneously. Some individuals placed one flag, while others cycled through the rows many times. 

Kyle Zimmer, a freshman and army veteran, said the demonstration reminded him of watching the events of 9/11 occur when he was young.

“9/11 happened when I was 11 years old, and I remember it pretty clearly,” Zimmer said. “I woke up and I just remember my mom turning on the television to the news, and she saw one of the towers smoking. It was so surreal. She wasn’t sure if it was real, but then we both saw the second plane flying to the second tower. And at that point, it was real.” 

He said that the events of 9/11 directly affected his future career in the Army.

“I actually ended up going into the military years later when I graduated high school, so 9/11 ended up having a huge impact on my life,” Zimmer said.

Zimmer said he believes the events of 9/11 have shaped the conscience of the nation. 

“There’s evil out there and the freedoms that we enjoy here in this country don’t go without a price,” Zimmer said. “It’s easy to take it for granted, living with all the blessings that we have here. Being able to show respect for the people who pay the price to ensure those freedoms for us is really important.”

Sophomore and veteran Gregory Whalen, who assisted in setting up for the ceremony, said that his career in the military and experience with loss reminded him of the importance of 9/11.

“I spent four years in the Marine Corps prior to coming here as a student,” Whalen said. “So it’s near and dear to my heart for that reason already, even though I was extremely young when 9/11 happened.” 

Whalen said he believes the event demonstrated Hillsdale’s commitment to American history.

“Any institution that tries to claim any sort of connection to America’s founding can be judged by whether it actually remembers the fallen and remembers the American past,” Whalen said.  “If it loses sight of this, then it can’t claim to actually be a truly American institution.”

Zimmer said the event was well-suited to Hillsdale’s legacy.

“Hillsdale has been great in terms of valuing our heritage and our our history, where we come from and our values,” Zimmer said, “so I think it’s really fitting that we would want to have this memorial today to carry on that tradition and continue to continue what we do best, which is pursuing truth and honor and preserving our heritage.”