PORTAGE, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — In honor of the 18th Anniversary of the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks, citizens of Kalamazoo are preparing to honor those who were lost with a ceremony Wednesday evening.
Event organizer Lorence Wenke says the event honors both the citizens and first responders who died in the attacks.
“These people didn’t die in a natural disaster, they died in an attack on our country which has changed the lives of virtually all of us,” Wenke said. “Then of course, the first responders, many of them died. All around us every day are first responders in our community who see horrible things frequently at night while we’re sound asleep safely in our beds.”
Instead of being held in Bronson Park, the event has been moved to the grounds of Valley Family Church in Portage.
“Due to construction in Bronson Park, we’ve had to move to another location, and we chose Valley Family Church, which is along I-94 and Oakland Avenue,” Wenke said.
The event will be emceed by Terri DeBoer of Wood TV Channel 8 and feature a variety of guest speakers and musicians.
“Our keynote speaker this year is Dr. Washington of Kalamazoo Valley Community College,” Wenke said. “We’ve got great music, we’ve got a lot of public safety people who come and really seem to appreciate the event.”
Musical guests will include the Kalamazoo Male Chorus and the Kalamazoo Pipe Band. Firefighter units and representatives from the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety will also be on site.
In the event of bad weather, the event will be moved inside the church.
The ceremony will begin at 5:30 this evening Wednesday evening. Valley Family Church is located at 2500 Vincent Ave, Portage, MI.
