Bucks County community honors 9/11 victims at Garden of Reflection memorial service
LOWER MAKEFIELD TWP., Pa. (WPVI) -- Hundreds of people gathered at the Garden of Reflection in Lower Makefield Township to honor the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, including the 18 Bucks County residents who were killed that day.
Hours after the ceremony ended, people remained at the memorial with candles, reflecting on the anniversary. Roses were left at plaques bearing the names of the Bucks County victims.
During the service, family members and community leaders reflected on loss, resilience and the lasting impact of the attacks.
Each name read at the memorial represented a life lost on Sept. 11, 2001.
Tara Bane, whose husband Michael Bane died in the attacks, recalled how, at that point in the day of the attacks, she still believed her husband had survived.
"I believed that Michael was coming home. I needed to believe that Michael was coming home. And it took me nine days to come to terms with the reality that he died in the north tower, possibly on impact and possibly later," Bane said.
Speakers also reflected on how the attacks altered the trajectory of their lives.
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Capt. Timothy Reeves of the Lower Makefield Police Department said he was a new patrolman at the time of the attacks. In the years that followed, he'd eventually be deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
"Before 9/11, being a police officer meant protecting the people here in Lower Makefield Township. After 9/11, we understood the threats facing our country could reach far beyond our community," Reeves said.
Many families attended the service in Bucks County, including Jane Godshalk Haller, whose brother, William Godshalk, was working in the south tower of the World Trade Center that morning.
"Tonight, we do not just stand in the shadow of what we lost. Together, as a community, we stand in the light of who they were, carrying their laughter into the rooms they left behind and holding on to a love that refuses to fade," Godshalk Haller said.
A temporary addition to the memorial, the Walls of Reflection, allows visitors to share personal messages on installed panels. The display will remain at Memorial Park through Sept. 20.
