Salisbury community reflects on memories, during 9/11 anniversary ceremony
SALISBURY, Md. — The Lower Eastern Shore came together Monday to mark the 24th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks in New York City, Washington and Pennsylvania.
For many Americans, the day remains frozen in memory. The question — Where were you on 9/11? — still brings vivid answers.
Salisbury City Council member Sharon Dashiell recalled being in her kindergarten classroom.
“I had a morning class and an afternoon class,” Dashiell said. “I remember parents rushing to pick up their kids earlier than usual until they were all gone. Then I turned on the TV. I immediately left because I had a college roommate who worked in the Pentagon. I went home without permission at that time and called. She had not gone to work that day.”
Salisbury Police Chief David Meienschein, who was working then as a patrol sergeant, had just come off the night shift.
“The phone started ringing from both my military colleagues and my colleagues on the force — ‘Hey, you got to turn on the TV. There’s something going on,’” he said. “And then, like everyone else at the time, I was just in disbelief at what we were witnessing.”
With years of military experience, Meienschein said he immediately suspected the attacks were intentional.
“You just knew right away it wasn’t an accident,” he said. “I got that feeling immediately. Things were going to change for me — and they did. My Air Force Reserve unit was activated for a year, and I spent that year at Dover. It’s something you never forget. It was an honor to serve.”
Salisbury Fire Chief Rob Frampton was in training in Ocean City that morning.
“I was working part time in Ocean City for the fire department and attending a training event with the state fire marshal’s bomb team,” Frampton said. “All of a sudden, one of the fire marshals came over and said we had to stop. ” he later added, “When I returned to headquarters as a volunteer, we kept staffing in place for about 24 hours until we were sure nothing else was happening. That day changed the fire service forever.”
April Jackson, a community member attending the ceremony, said the memories remain painful.
“Seeing it was believing it,” she said. “Even today, with this ceremony, my heart is still sad for all the souls that were lost — for someone to want to take so many lives.”
Frampton said part of his responsibility now is to help younger firefighters who were not alive in 2001 understand the significance of the day.
“It’s part of our duty to make sure the younger members understand what it means to the country,” he said.
Meienschein added that service is the best way to honor those lost.
“The best way to remember the folks who perished is to consider a life of service — in the police department, fire department, EMS,” he said. “We honor their legacy every day by doing the best job we can do.”
Dashiell urged younger generations to seek out the memories of those who lived through it.
“Those of you who were not born or were too young to remember, take a minute and stop a firefighter or police officer and ask them what they’d like to share,” she said. “The message is to remember — to never, ever forget — because it happened once, and we never want it to happen again.”
