Picture this, dear reader. I began walking down the long stretch of concrete, many of us know Keyhole Drive. Cars are lined up on either side. The sounds of fire tones and radios blaring. A blinding light cuts through the darkness, and there, in full glory, an American flag. My teeth chatter in the cold as I make my way toward the bottom of the 77. Now, typically, I would be in bed at this hour. But I wasn’t.
It was Friday, September 11th, 2026. 5 a.m. The twenty-fifth anniversary of 9/11…and I was about to participate in the Memorial Stair Climb.
Earlier that week, I had started talking about the climb with a few friends. One had done it before. Another didn’t even know it existed. The rest of us had usually skipped it because, well, we were in class. This year was different. We were all available and were determined to do it. Then, as I was getting ready, came the texts. One friend slept through his alarm. Another got sick. One was still ready to go. Great. My first thought was that we would bail, as we had plenty of times before. But apparently, holding yourself accountable is important in college. Who would have thought?
So, at 5 a.m., I found myself standing at the bottom of the 77, looking up. Right there, in that moment, I stopped thinking about how tired I was.
When I arrived, I was told to grab what appeared to be small pieces of paper. When I walked over, I realized they weren’t paper at all. They were photographs. Photographs of the 353 we lost. Suddenly, this had a purpose. I picked one up: Firefighter Michael Kiefer.
After climbing a couple of flights, I stopped to research him. Michael Vernon Kiefer, 25, was a firefighter with Ladder 132 in Brooklyn, New York. But the details of his life weren’t really the point. The point was that I was climbing for him. For them. To remember the people who walked into danger that day and never came home. One step at a time, literally.
I put on my headphones and started playing music to keep myself moving. Once through. Done. Twice. Keep going.
Eventually, I remembered that I was also there for the newspaper. Somewhere around the twentieth trip up and down, I stopped for interviews and, naturally, for water. That was when I noticed some familiar faces.
“I was in middle school when 9/11 happened. I mean, like, I knew it was bad, but I didn’t realize how bad it was until I got older,” Brittany Donalds said. Now, as an adult and a mother, she sees the day differently. “There were kids that didn’t know what was happening to their mom or dad and those that sacrificed their lives to save many that they could. Being here and remembering what happened all those years ago is a little crazy. It’s emotional.”
As my final flights came into view, the 77 offered an unexpected opportunity for reflection. A few Winfield Fire/EMS members shared what the annual climb means to them and why continuing it matters. Fire/EMS Operations Support Specialist Jessica Dibble remembers being a high school freshman when the attack occurred.
“I was in my freshman year of high school, in computer class. Someone came in and ran in telling us what was going on and turning on the TV. But truthfully, I didn’t even know what the World Trade Center was.” Years later, working at the fire station and participating alongside her colleagues has given the day a different meaning. “It’s strange to look back as an adult and now that I work at the station, I get to do this with the guys, and it’s incredible. It’s humbling,” she said.
For her, climbing is both a physical challenge and an opportunity to step outside the routines of everyday life.
“I think we all get so focused on ourselves; it gives us a chance to reflect and give back,” she said. “With us doing this, it’s keeping the memory alive, so we don’t forget.”
She also sees the event as a way for younger generations, like yours truly, that have no firsthand memory of 9/11. Only connecting with the event through the stories of others.
“Everybody has those conversations,” she said. “The kids that are running around here, I’m sure even you as a college student, have no memory of 9/11 except what we, the generations before, have given you.”
Firefighter/EMT Brayden Krepps, who has worked for the Winfield Fire Department for five years, shared a similar perspective.
“It’s good to get out, and to never forget what happened that day,” Krepps said. “In a way, it’s spiritual, and it brings people together.”
He pointed to the number of participants who showed up for the first round as evidence of that sense of community. “I know for a fact that we would’ve had a lot more people if there weren’t town events today,” he said.
Still, he sees the turnout as a reason to look ahead. “Knowing that means we are really going to have to prep for next year,” Krepps said. “I think the people who missed out, don’t sweat it. There’s always next year.”
For DreShaun Flowers, remembering 9/11 comes with a different perspective. Born in 2003, he did not experience the attacks firsthand. Instead, he ran in memory of Officer Walwyn Wellington Stuart Jr., using the event as an opportunity to reflect on those who lost their lives.
“I mean, this whole thing is bigger than me.” Flowers said.
For Flowers, the climb became less about his own experience and more about honoring the strength of those who came before him.
“I think about if they were getting up and fighting as hard as they did, I could too for this morning,” he said. While the impact of 9/11 continues to shape the country, Flowers said moments of remembrance offer a chance to come together. “With me doing my little part, it’s eye-opening.” Flowers said. “Just remembering that we’re all here one day at a time, and never forgetting to take what we have for granted.”
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By the time I made it home, I found myself thinking about everything people had said throughout the morning. The climb was more than an early morning assignment for The Collegian. It was more than a finish line of remembrance, or the sweat and leg pain…which I’ll admit, I was a victim of. It was about what happens when a generation that did not experience 9/11 firsthand chooses to remember it anyway.
At Southwestern College, we are constantly surrounded by traditions, people and stories that existed long before we arrived. We learn about 9/11 through photographs, videos and the memories of parents, professors, first responders and generations before us. Standing among Winfield firefighters, community members and fellow students, I realized that remembering does not belong only to those who were there. It belongs to those willing to carry the memory forward. Sometimes, that means showing up. Sometimes, it means taking the next step.
Twenty-five years later, that was what the Memorial Stair Climb asked of us. Southwestern College gave us the opportunity to be part of it. Who knows what our generation will pass on to those who experience the fiftieth year, or even the hundredth? But I know this. What we do today helps us tell what to do tomorrow, and maybe that’s what it is.
