9.11.2026 - 9/11 Memorial Ceremony - 25th Anniversary

Good morning, everyone.

Welcome to our annual Rite of Reflection ceremony, where we recall or learn about the horrific events, events of 25 years ago today.

I want to acknowledge all who have assisted with this ceremony as indicated in your program booklet.

Too many to vocally recognize.

Please refer to the program booklet to see those folks.

I also want to recognize any Gold Star families that are here in our delegation.

Some of them are in the front row here.

Thank you for attending.

I now want to ask or invite Mike Arruda, father of a firefighter retired, to the podium to interpret the meaning of the 4 5s.

Striking of the 4 fives.

The fire service is rich with ceremony, customs, and traditions.

Our custom of rendering final honors has its origins in the Fire Department of the City of Fall River, where many years ago, long before the advent of radios, pagers, fire alarms, and daily announcements were dispatched from central headquarters to outlying firehouses by a system of bells and telegraphs, each different type of alarm or announcement would have its own number.

And series of bell strikes when a firefighter died in the line of duty, or when some important official or personage died.

Headquarters would transmit 5 bell strikes repeating in 4 series with a slight pause between each, followed by the announcement.

This was done as long as 1865 in the New York City Fire Department to inform the rank and file of the death of Abraham Lincoln.

The custom has continued to the present day, and this form of rendering final honors to departed comrades is known as the fire service as striking the four fives.

Thank you, Mike and Elizabeth.

Rachel Raposo will now sing the national anthem.

Please remain standing.

Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light, what so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming, whose broad stripes and bright stars Through the perilous fight, o'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming.

And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.

Oh, say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Thank you very much, Rachel.

Father Mike Racine will now do the invocation.

The prayer that I'm using this morning was a very special prayer given by two people.

In 2008, Pope Benedict visited Ground Zero.

And in 2015, Pope Francis visited Ground Zero, and both of these Holy Fathers prayed this very prayer.

And I thought very appropriately on this significant anniversary to use this today.

O God of love, compassion, and healing, look on us people of many many different faiths and traditions who gather at this site, the scene of incredible violence and pain.

We ask you in your goodness to give eternal light and peace to all who died here, the heroic first responders, our firefighters, police officers, emergency service workers, and Port Authority personnel.

And out, along with all the innocent men and women who were victims of this tragedy simply because their work of service brought them here on September 11th, 2001.

We ask you in your compassion to bring healing to those who, because of their presence here that day, suffer from injuries and illness.

Heal too the pain of still grieving families and all who lost ones in this tragedy.

Give them strength to continue their lives with courage and hope.

We are mindful as well of those who suffered death, injury, and loss on that same day in the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

Our hearts are one with theirs.

As our prayer embraces their pain and suffering.

God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world, peace in the hearts of all men and women, and peace among the nations of the earth.

Turn to your way of love those whose hearts and minds are consumed with hatred.

God of understanding, overwhelmed by the magnitude of this tragedy, we seek your light and guidance as we confront such terrible events.

Grant that those whose lives were spared may live so that the lives here lost may not have been lost in vain.

Comfort and console us, strengthen us in hope, give us the wisdom and courage to work tirelessly for a world where true peace and love reign among nations and in the hearts of all.

And finally, we offer a prayer today for the very first victim, Father Michael Judge, the chaplain of the New York City Fire Department, who became victim 001 in this tragedy.

May he rest in peace.

Amen.

Thank you, Father Mike.

Now there will be a series of remarks by Fall River Public Safety officials, starting with Chief Bacon.

Please be seated.

Good morning, everybody.

Last year when we gathered, I spoke about the importance of remembering to remember September 11th.

25 years after the attacks, I think that message is even more important.

For those of us who remember September 11th, we remember exactly where we were.

We remember the images.

We remember the uncertainty and the sadness, and we remember the incredible courage we witnessed that day.

But 25 years is a long time.

There are now firefighters serving in departments across this country who were not alive on September 11th.

There's an entire generation that knows that day only through the stories we tell them.

That makes our responsibility to remember Even more important, and I think that responsibility goes beyond making sure future generations know what happened that day.

We also have a responsibility to make sure they understand what it meant.

As I was considering what message to bring today, I saw a commercial for an organization called 9/11 Day.

Pete Davidson was speaking.

Most people know him as a comedian and actor, but on September 11th, 2001, Pete Davidson was a 7-year-old boy whose father, Scott Davidson, was a New York City firefighter responding to the World Trade Center.

In the commercial, Pete talks about his memories of that day, including finding out that his father had died.

But the message, the message was It wasn't just about remembering how his father died.

It was about honoring how he lived.

His father was a firefighter.

He served people, and when people needed him most, he answered the call.

The idea behind 9/11 Day is simple: honor those we lost by doing something good in their memory.

For the 25th anniversary, they're asking Americans to make that pledge.

I think there's something very meaningful about that.

Ceremonies like this are important.

The flags, the monument, the moments of silence, and the ringing of the bell are traditions that connect us to people and events that get a little farther away from us with each passing year.

But I also think there's more to remembering September 11th than remembering what happened that morning.

We should remember what happened afterward.

Tragedy has a way of changing our perspective.

In its immediate aftermath, so many of the things that consume our attention every day suddenly don't seem very important.

The disagreements, the arguments, the things we find to complain about, they all fall away.

We stop looking for reasons to divide ourselves.

For a time, tragedy forces us to focus on the one thing we all share, our common humanity.

And that's exactly what we saw in the wake of September 11th.

We saw extraordinary courage from firefighters, police officers, paramedics, and ordinary citizens.

But we also saw something much broader across this country.

People lined up to give blood.

They volunteered.

They donated.

They helped strangers.

They checked on their neighbors.

Communities came together.

For a time, the differences between us seemed much less important than what we needed to do for one another.

We must remember the nearly 3,000 lives that were taken.

We must remember the first responders and recovery workers who have died in the years since.

And we must remember the courage and sacrifice of those who answered the call.

But we should also remember what happened to us.

For a time, we saw each other differently.

We recognized our common humanity.

And maybe part of honoring September 11th is finding a way to hold on to a little more of that, not only in the wake of tragedy, but in the ordinary days when it's much easier to forget.

That brings me back to the 9/11 pledge.

I would ask each of you to take a second this morning, go to 911day.org, and make a simple pledge to do something in memory of somebody we lost on September 11th.

I made that pledge myself.

I made mine in memory of John Farrell.

John was a graduate of Holy Cross in Worcester and a close friend of my older cousin.

He worked at Cantor Fitzgerald in the World Trade Center.

I knew John when I was younger, and he made an impact on my life.

John was the kind of person who made you feel important.

When he talked to you, you felt like what you had to say mattered.

I was younger than John, but he never made me feel that way.

He took an interest in who you were, and that stayed with me.

On the morning of September 11th, John was at work in the North Tower.

He was able to call loved ones and tell them that he was okay.

But John never made it out of the building.

He was 32 years old.

So today, in John's memory, I'm going to carry forward something that he gave to the people around him.

I'm going to do my best to help the people around me feel their own importance, to take time to listen, to recognize what they contribute, and and to make sure they know they matter.

And that's really the idea.

If you have a connection to someone who died on September 11th, think about who they were and what they gave to the people around them.

If you don't have that connection, Take a few minutes and find one.

Find a name, learn their story, learn something about who they were, not just how they died, and then find some way to carry a piece of that story forward.

That's how nearly 3,000 names remain nearly— remain nearly 3,000 individual lives.

Last year I asked us to remember to remember.

25 years later, I think there's more to that responsibility than simply remembering what happened on September 11th.

We should remember the people we lost, but we should also remember what that day taught us about ourselves.

In the aftermath of an unimaginable tragedy, we stopped focusing so much on the things that separated us.

We recognized something much more basic: that we needed one another, that we had a responsibility to one another, and that our common humanity mattered more than our differences.

25 years from now, the ceremonies will continue, and The bells will still ring.

The names will still be read.

What those names mean and what September 11th means will depend on what we choose to pass on.

For me, one of those names is John Farrell.

For you, it might be someone different.

Remember their name.

Tell their story.

Let someone else know who they were.

And in some small way, allow the way they lived to have an impact on the way we live today.

Maybe if we do that, we can also hold on to a little of what we understood so clearly in the days after September 11th, that beneath all of our differences, there's far more that connects us than divides us.

Last year, I asked you to remember to remember.

This year, I would simply add, remember what mattered.

Thank you.

Thank you, Chief Bacon.

Fall River Police Chief, Chief Horton.

Good morning.

I stand before you today with nothing prepared to say, and some may look at me and think I'm crazy, but it's a statement of respect to those that served in public safety on 9/11 because they were not prepared for what they were able to face that day.

So I felt that I would give myself the same feeling and put myself in their shoes in not being prepared for what would be happening today, also back in 2001.

As Chief Bacon said, we all remember what we were doing if we were alive back then.

I wasn't even in law enforcement.

At that time.

But 10 years later, I had the privilege to get into law enforcement.

With that said, it's the proudest day of my life to serve this city and also follow in the footsteps of all the first responders that serve this country.

I think that September 11th was a day that represents why we take this oath, why we do what we do, and it represents that every one of the public safety people that serve our city, serve our country are willing to put themselves and their safety ahead of anyone else so that they could be safe.

And that is an important thing.

Last night, my wife and I were watching a documentary about 9/11 so that we could remember, and I fought back some tears listening to some of the survivors and what they had to say and the phone calls they received from some of the people that were on planes that were destined for where they knew was going to be death.

It's a powerful thing, but those tears that come, even though I did not suffer personal loss from 9/11, those tears are the remembrance of the people that have fallen, whether it be the loved ones, whether it be the first responders of the 3,000 there.

But one thing that should not be forgotten is those that have suffered in the wake of it, not only from the trauma they faced because of that day, because of personal losses, but of the exposures that they had from the 9/11 tragedy.

With that said, I think Chief Bacon did an excellent job of putting all the bullet points there, but I think we should always remember and never forget.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Chief.

Chief Fonz, Fall River EMS.

Good morning, everyone.

It's a tough act to follow, but I'll— We stand here today to mark a milestone of the 25th anniversary of September 11th, 2001.

A quarter of a century has passed since the world shifted.

25 years since the morning our sky darkened, our nation faced an unprecedented tragedy.

But for those of us in emergency medical services, for everyone who wears a uniform, and for families who live every day with an empty chair at their table, time does not erase the memory.

It only deepens our, our duty to remember.

We gather today to pay tribute to 2,977 lives lost, stolen from us, and specifically to honor the profound courage of our brothers and sisters we lost in the line of duty.

On that day, the world was running away from the towers.

Our fellow paramedics, EMTs, firefighters, and police officers were running in.

They didn't hesitate.

They didn't calculate the risk.

They heard the cries of strangers in saw only a duty to save, to comfort, and to protect.

They gave their last measure of honor and duty in the finest tradition of our service.

We carry their names, their faces, and their unbroken spirits in our hearts.

To the families of our fallen brothers and sisters, we say to you today, as we have said every year for the last 25, your sacrifice was immeasurable.

You are not alone.

We recognize the burden of that day did not end when the smoke cleared.

You have carried the weight of their absence through milestones, holidays, and ordinary days that should have been shared.

You, you are living the legacy of their heroism, and this department remains forever in your home, in our hearts.

As we remember human lives, we must also honor the four-legged heroes who stood shoulder to shoulder with us in the ash.

We remember the nearly 300 or so canines that were deployed to the rubble, and one canine, Cyrus, who lost his life in the ultimate sacrifice.

He died in the second tower.

Those loyal partners didn't just search for survivors, they offered quiet, desperate comfort to those exhausted handlers and broken responders who needed a reason to carry on.

But as we look back over the 25 years, our promise to never forget must extend beyond the immediate losses of that day.

We must honor the thousands of responders who survived the initial collapse and have spent the last 2 decades fighting the invisible, lingering warfare of that day.

We remember and stand with those who are suffering today with the physical toll, the debilitating illnesses from weeks and months spent digging in through the dust and rubble of Ground Zero.

And just as crucially, we honor and acknowledge those carrying the psychological weight of that day, the trauma, the sleepless nights, and the profound emotional scars left by the search and rescue mission that tested the absolute limits of their human endurance.

The dust may have settled long ago, but the sacrifice of search continues to claim our brothers and sisters today.

To those within public safety family currently fighting those battles, we see you, we thank you, we honor you.

25 years later, the true monument to those we lost is not made of steel, stone, or light.

It is built of the work we do every day, every time we answer the call.

We, we have it from here.

Your legacy lives on.

We continue to carry on with courage, compassion, and bravery to our chosen profession.

We dedicate ourselves to calling the ennobled.

Let us look after one another, look out for families left behind, and fiercely protect the health of those who continue to bear the scars.

May God bless our fallen brothers and sisters.

May he continue to protect our families and Watch over the men and women of this department, and may the wind always be at your back.

Thank you, Chief Fons.

Sheriff Harrow, Bristol County Sheriff's Department.

Okay.

Good morning.

It's nice to be here with all of you.

For anyone who witnessed September 11th, it was a day that changed us.

For some of us, it opened our eyes to hate from abroad, a new kind of cruelty and violence.

For others, it led to a career in government.

It showed us how our police and fire are there there for us at home and our soldiers abroad.

It was a time when our country came together.

American flags were proudly displayed on the streets across America.

Today and every year we come together to remember.

While today is a day of somber remembrance, it's also a day to appreciate that we can all come together, a moment when we can put aside differences, that we can believe in and be part of something bigger than ourselves, our country.

It's unfortunate we too often need to share an enemy to come together.

Fascism in World War II brought us together, communism during the Cold War, and terrorism after September 11th.

When we don't have someone else to fight, we fight each other.

But not today.

With all life-changing events, we always say, never forget.

Equally as important is never forgetting is to never stop learning, because when we collectively and individually stop learning, we forget.

And when we forget, we let the memories of those who died as victims and defenders disappear into history.

Let us never forget.

Thank you, Sheriff.

Mayor Paul Coogan, City of Fall River.

I'll tell you, to me, 25 years seems like a blink of time.

It just seems like it was yesterday.

But good morning, everyone.

I want to thank fire, police, EMS honor guards, our first responders, our veterans, and everyone gathered here today.

For this rite of reflection.

25 years ago, the world changed in an instant.

Nearly 3,000 lives were stolen from us on September 11th, including many from Massachusetts.

To the families who carry the weight of that absence every single day, Fall River stands with you, and we will never forget.

But 9/11 is not only a day of tragedy, it's a testament to the strength of human spirit.

On that horrific morning, ordinary people answered the call with extraordinary bravery.

First responders ran towards the danger, risking everything to save others.

In the dark days that followed, America united.

We stood shoulder to shoulder, proving that unity and patriotism always shine brighter than terror.

Now a quarter of a century's passed.

An entire generation has grown up with no memory of that Tuesday morning.

So it's our responsibility to teach them history, not just how these heroes died, but how they lived and how our nation came together right after that tragedy.

As mayor of Fall River, it's my hope that we do not wait for tragedy to unite us again.

Let us carry this spirit to our daily lives by supporting our local heroes and standing by our neighbors.

May God bless the souls we lost, comfort the family, protect our first responders, and God bless the city of Fall River and the United States of America.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mayor.

Father Rob Nemcovich.

Good morning.

As we recall the horrific events of September 11th, 2001, remembering the 343 firefighters, 72 police officers, 8 EMTs and paramedics, a part of the 2,900 977 lives lost.

I'd like to share with you a reflection so that we will never forget the sacrifice, especially of our first responders.

Let the world always remember that fateful day in September, and the ones who answered duty's call should be remembered and honored by us all.

Our paramedics, police, and firefighters, always there for the needs of others, left the comfort of their home to face perils yet unknown, the embodiment of goodness on a day when evil hearts had gone astray.

They never questioned what they had to do, but rather ran into hell to save as many as they could, who by example were a source of hope and strength to others who could not cope.

Heroes that would not turn their back, with determination that would not crack, who bound together in their ranks and asking not a word of thanks.

First responders who bravely gave their lives, whose orphaned kids and widowed wives can proudly look back on their mom or dad who gave this country all they had.

Actions taken without regret, heroism we shall never forget.

To the ones who paid the ultimate price, let us never forget their sacrifice.

Lord, as we honor their memory here, those who gave their lives for all that we hold dear, may their memory never wane so that their sacrifice is not in vain.

Thank you, Father Rob.

Our guest speaker today is Darlene Tetreault of the South Coast Nurses Honor Guard.

Darlene?

Good morning.

My name is Darlene Tedrow, and I am the president and founder of the South Coast Nurse Honor Guard.

Today, here on the grounds of the historic Battleship Massachusetts, standing before the September 11th Memorial, we gather to remember a day that forever changed our nation and touched the lives of people around the world.

We gather to honor the lives that were lost, the heroes who answered the call, and the families and communities forever changed by September 11th, 2001.

25 years have passed, yet memories remain long after.

At 8:46 AM, American Airlines Flight Flight 11 struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

17 minutes later, at 9:03 AM, United Airlines Flight 175 struck the South Tower.

In those moments, our nation was changed forever.

Across New York City, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, and throughout our country, People answered the call that they had never expected to receive.

Firefighters ran towards burning buildings, the burning towers.

Police officers rushed towards danger.

EMTs and paramedics began treating the injured.

Emergency management personnel worked to coordinate an unprecedented response.

Military stood ready to protect our nation, and ordinary citizens found remarkable courage in the face of unimaginable circumstances.

We are also honored to have among us one of our own honorary members, Captain Mary Golf, a retired United States Army captain and registered nurse.

Captain Goff represents the extraordinary commitment to both service and nursing that we honor today.

We are grateful to have her standing here besides us as we remember and honor all who served and sacrificed on September 11th.

As we remember those who served in sacrifice, we also remember that September 11th touched communities right here at home.

Here in Fall River, we remember Christopher D. Mello, whose father Douglas was born in Fall River and was a graduate of BMC Durfee High School.

Christopher was aboard American Airlines Flight 11.

We also remember Reverend Francis Grogan, a priest and a World War II veteran who served in the United States Army.

He later served as acting pastor at St. Stanislaus Church here in Fall River.

Father Grogan was aboard United Airlines Flight 175.

We remember too all those from the surrounding South Coast communities whose lives were lost that that day.

Their connections remind us that September 11th reached into our own neighborhoods and touched people right here at home.

Among those who answered the call were search and rescue teams, together with their dedicated canine partners, who entered areas of devastating destruction searching for survivors and those who never made it home.

These remarkable dogs worked tirelessly beside their handlers, searching through rubble, dust, and debris.

They too became part of the story of September 11th.

As a nurse, I have always understood that when someone is hurt, frightened, or in crisis, you don't stop to ask whether you are ready.

You answer the call.

And as an EMT, I have even a deeper understanding of what it means to respond when someone needs help, when seconds matter, when the situation is uncertain, and when you must put your training and compassion into action.

Some members of the South Coast Nurse Honor Guard share the same dual commitment.

We are nurses, and we are also EMTs.

So when we stand here today honoring the first responders of September 11th, we do so not only as nurses but with a personal understanding of the responsibility carried by those who answer the call.

We understand what it means to put on the uniform, pick up your equipment, and go towards someone else's emergency.

But September 11th was unlike anything anyone could have anticipated, and the courage displayed that day was beyond measure.

We remember the innocent men, women, and children whose lives were taken.

We remember the first responders who ran towards danger while others were running away.

We remember the countless acts of courage, compassion, and selflessness that followed.

Today, the South Coast Nurse Honor Guard is honored to recognize another group whose service was an essential part of the response to September 11th: the nurses and the healthcare professionals who answered the call.

Nurses were there.

Nurses cared for those affected by the attacks, including injured survivors and those who have responded to the scene.

They comforted the frightened.

They worked alongside physicians, EMTs, firefighters, police officers, and other first responders during moments of profound fear and uncertainty.

They worked long hours, They witnessed things no one should have ever had to see, and they continued to care.

They offered skilled hands, compassionate hearts, and humanity when it was needed most.

Nursing has always stood beside those who served, and on September 11th, nurses stood beside those heroes who came home wounded, exhausted, exhausted, grieving, and forever changed.

The lamp we carry today represents the light of nursing.

It represents Florence Nightingale, whose legacy taught generations of nurses that caring for another human being is both a privilege and a sacred responsibility.

Today, this light shines in memory of all those whose lives were lost on September 11th, 2001.

It shines for the first responders who made the ultimate sacrifice.

It shines for all the survivors whose lives were forever changed.

And it shines in every nurse and healthcare professional who answered the call to serve.

Even in the darkest moments, there were people who brought light, comfort, skill, and hope.

May the light remind us that compassion can be found even in the darkest of days.

We present this white rose as a symbol of purity, compassion, remembrance, and peace.

We place this rose in honor of every innocent life lost on September 11th, 2001.

We place this rose in honor of the first responders who made the ultimate sacrifice, and we place it in gratitude for the nurses and healthcare professionals who cared for the wounded and stood beside those who needed them most.

Colors.

Present arms.

As we gather here at this historic site, surrounded by the legacy of those who have served our nation, we ask everyone to join us in a moment of silence.

Silence for the lives that were lost.

Silence for the heroes who gave everything.

Silence for the families who continue to live with that loss.

Silence for those who continue to carry the physical and emotional wounds of that day.

And silence for the nurses, healthcare professionals, first responders, military members, and all those who demonstrated extraordinary courage.

September 11th was not only a day of devastating loss, it was also a day that revealed the remarkable courage, compassion, sacrifice, and unity in the face of circumstances that no one could have anticipated.

When we speak of the heroes of September 11th, we are not speaking only of the firefighters, police officers who ran towards danger.

We remember them.

We also recognize the nurses, physicians, EMTs, paramedics, emergency management personnel, healthcare professionals, military members, search and rescue teams and their canine partners, dispatchers, volunteers, and countless others who answered the call to serve.

We also recognize the emergency management teams who work behind the scenes coordinating resources, communicating across agencies, supporting first responders, and helping bring order to an unimaginable crisis.

Their work may not always been visible to the public, but it was essential.

They were the steady hands behind the response, helping connect people, resources, and agencies needed during one of the darkest moments in our nation's history.

We remember those who cared for the injured, those Those who searched through the devastation, those who comforted the frightened, those who supported the grieving families, and those who continued serving long after the headlines faded.

Every one of them played a part in the story of September 11th, and every one of them deserves to be remembered and honored.

Today we stand together not as a separate profession, but as a community of people who understand the meaning of service, sacrifice, compassion, and courage.

We remember every life lost.

We remember every hero who responded.

We remember every family who endured unimaginable loss.

And we remember every person who continued to serve in the days, weeks, months, and years that followed.

So today we do more than remember.

We honor, we give thanks, and we promise to carry their stories forward.

May we never forget.

The lives that were lost.

May we never forget the heroes who responded.

May we never forget the courage of those who ran towards danger.

And may we never forget the compassion of those who cared for the survivors.

The South Coast Nurse Honor Guard is honored to stand with you to remember, to honor, and to never forget.

We remember September 11th, 2001.

We remember the lives lost.

We honor the heroes who served, and we carry their memory forward.

Never forget.

Thank you, Darlene.

EMA Chief Aguiar and Commander Caron— Caron, excuse me— will now carry the wreath to our contemplative circle.

Present arms.

Motor off.

Thank you, gentlemen.

Please stand by for a 21-gun salute from the battleship's starboard 5-inch battery.

Present arms.

Cassandra will now render taps.

Father Rob, for the benediction, please.

Please join me in prayer.

Lord God, On this hallowed day, we remember.

We remember those lives lost in the attacks on 9/11 that day and the aftermath.

The first responders and investigators in the rubble who died from cancer and the U.S. service members killed in the subsequent War on Terror.

Although they are no longer present with us here, they remain forever present in our hearts and live on in our memories.

We embrace, we embrace those whose sorrow is immeasurable.

May we surround them with comforting love and grace.

We honor, we honor those in uniform who continue courageously to run toward danger on our behalf.

And who fight for freedom from terror.

May we be worthy of their courage and sacrifice.

We ask, we ask our elected officials to always lead in ways that promote peace over war, reason over passion, and love over hate.

May all here gathered and those commemorating this day across our nation find your blessing in their lives, with your light and hope in all their days.

And I end with the prayer of Saint Francis.

Lord, make us an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let us sow love.

Where there is injury, pardon.

Where there is doubt, faith.

Where there is despair, hope.

Where there is darkness, light.

Where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that we may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive, in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Let us go now in peace.

Amen.

Thank you, Father Rob.

Are Bill and Paula Damaris here?

Okay, Bill and Paula will release doves as a symbol of peace.

Thank you, Paula and Bill.

Honor guards, retire the colors.

Amazing Grace by William Bullard.

Order!

Halt!

Thank you, William.

We will conclude this ceremony with the singing of God Bless America by 7-year-old Lily and accompanied by Julia.

God bless America, land that I love.

Stand beside her and guide her through the night with the light from above.

From the mountains to the prairies to the ocean white with foam.

God bless America, my home sweet home.

God bless America, my home sweet home.

Home sweet home.

God bless America, land that I love.

Stand beside her and guide her Through the night with the light from above.

From the mountains to the prairies to the oceans white with foam.

God bless America.

My home, sweet home.

God bless America, my home, sweet home.

Thank you, Lily and Juliana.

This concludes our ceremony.

Thank you for your attendance, and please enjoy the rest of your day.