Plover readies for 20th anniversary 9/11 program

By Brandi Makuski

The Village of Plover on Saturday will mark the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks with a special ceremony at village hall.

This weekend’s program was organized by the village’s fire and police departments and will be held at the 9/11 Memorial in front of the Plover Municipal Center, 2400 Post Rd. Members of the Wisconsin National Guard have volunteered to help set up.

The Plover VFW will provide a Color Guard, followed by a bagpiper-led processional of local police, fire, and EMS. Pastor Leah Woehr-Grande from Good Shepherd Lutheran Church will lead a short prayer.

A 9/11 Proclamation from Administrator Dan Mahoney will be followed by a Bell Ceremony and Laying of the Wreaths by Police Chief Dan Ault and Fire Chief Mark Deaver to commemorate the 412 police, fire, and EMS workers who perished on Sept. 11, 2001.

Deputy Fire Chief Ken Voss said the department will install 412 miniature American flags in front of the building prior to Saturday morning’s ceremony. Volunteers from PFD have adorned each flag with the name of a first responder who died that day.

The 9/11 Memorial, a piece of steel from an I-beam that provided floor support in the World Trade Center, has been on display in the village since 2011. Assistant Police Chief Ryan Fox helped the village acquire the piece as a permanent memorial. Pieces of I-beams from the Twin Towers are also on display in Wisconsin Rapids and Marshfield.

“The heart of the message this year should be remembering how we all came together the day after 9/11,” Fox said. “Remember the day after, when everybody came together, unified? That’s what this should be about.”

The memorial program will begin at 8:46 a.m.—the time of the first airplane strike on the North Tower of the World Trade Center. Afterward, snacks and refreshments will be provided in the fire department bay.