Senator Collins Honors Victims and First Responders at 9/11 Memorial Ceremony in Augusta

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AUGUSTA, ME - U.S. Senator Susan Collins delivered remarks today at the Maine Firefighters Memorial in Augusta during a ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The ceremony was hosted by the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 1650 in partnership with the Augusta Fire Honor Guard.

"We join together today to remember those whose lives were taken that terrible morning - nearly 3,000 innocent men, women, and children, workers doing their jobs, travelers embarking on trips," said Senator Collins during her remarks.

"Men and women like Robert and Jacqueline Norton of Lubec, Maine, who boarded Flight 11 to celebrate a son's wedding in California. At about the same time, Flight 175 took off with Robert Jalbert, a Massachusetts businessman and talented woodworker who grew up in Lewiston. Also on board was James Roux of Portland, on the first leg of a dream trip to climb the Himalayas. Stephen Ward of Gorham had just moved to New York City to work for Cantor Fitzgerald. He was among the 658 employees killed in the North Tower. Navy Commander Robert Schlegel of Gray was settling into his new assignment at the Pentagon. His office was believed to be the point of impact for Flight 77," she continued.

"On the evening of that terrible day, members of Congress gathered on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. With tears in our eyes and sorrow in our hearts, together we sang, 'God Bless America.' The emotions of shock, anger, and grief were joined by determination. That moment remains my most enduring memory. The passage of 25 years has not dimmed our memory or diminished our gratitude. As long as we keep the meaning of this day of remembrance in our hearts, we shall meet the challenges that lie ahead," Senator Collins concluded.

Following the September 11 attacks, Senator Collins, then Chair of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, led the effort with the late Senator Joe Lieberman in authoring the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which implemented the key recommendations of the independent 9/11 Commission. This comprehensive, bipartisan legislation was the most significant restructuring of the American intelligence community in more than half a century, dismantling the "stovepipes" that had left intelligence agencies holding separate pieces of information without a means to connect them. The law established the Director of National Intelligence and the National Counterterrorism Center to close those information-sharing gaps, helping to prevent future terrorist attacks.

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