As each year becomes further away from September 11, 2001, Wantagh High School has made it a priority for students to keep the memories of its many heroes alive. This year, the image of former Wantagh High School football player Gary Box on the screen as one of the heroes from Brooklyn Squad 1 who ran from the tunnel to the towers, hit close to home.

Due to the ongoing success of the partnership with the Gary Sinise Foundation and the Wantagh Warrior 9/11 Memorial 5K held last September, 164 junior-class students and chaperones were able to participate in a day-long learning experience at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum on March 19. The trip included powerful oral histories from survivors, sharing firsthand accounts from the day of September 11 and the days that followed.

After an introduction and Q&A session with Noah Rauch, Senior Vice President of Education & Public Programs, Mr. Rausch introduced this year’s oral historian. This year’s speaker was Kim Royster, a 39-year veteran of the NYPD Transportation Bureau and the first African American woman to become an Assistant Chief, remembers that morning with remarkable clarity. She shared with the audience how her experience in emergency situations had already shaped her instincts. Years before, she had been assigned to the press office in 1993 when the first car bomb exploded at the World Trade Center, so when events began to unfold on September 11, she sensed immediately that something was terribly wrong.

Unlike reading or watching videos from that day, students were able to ask questions about Mrs. Royster’s thoughts and actions, placing them closer to September 11, 2001. She shared what ran through her head when she noticed what appeared to be an airplane wheel on the ground in front of her. The noise in the air, the running to take shelter as the towers fell placed students in the moment alongside Mrs. Royster placed students in those moments. After answering the student's questions, her parting words were, “We will never forget the hate, but we are better together.”

For future race, volunteer, donation, and sponsorship opportunities, please visit the www.wantaghschools.org/ww911m5krun or the 9/11 Committee at wsd9-11commitee@wantaghschools.org. For more information on the Gary Sinise Foundation, please visit The Gary Sinise Foundation Website.