September 9, 2026
ISSUE 37
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25 Years Later:
Eatonville Will Remember 9/11 by Serving Together
Community invited to gather Saturday, Sept. 12, for remembrance ceremony, town-wide service projects and volunteer appreciation BBQ
EATONVILLE 9/11 DAY OF SERVICE & REMEMBRANCE
KEVIN BACHER, THE LIGHT IS ALL PHOTOGRAPHY
T
wenty-five years after the attacks of September 11, 2001, the Eatonville community will gather beneath the American flag to remember. Then, as the final notes of Taps fade, neighbors will pick up gloves, rakes, cleaning supplies and tools and go to work serving one another. The Eatonville 9/11 Day of Service & Remembrance returns Saturday, Sept. 12, bringing together first responders, students, Scouts, faith communities, businesses, civic organizations, families and neighbors for a morning of remembrance and service. The day will begin at 9 a.m. at the Eatonville High School flagpole, 302 Mashell Ave. N., with a special ceremony commemorating the 25th anniversary of 9/11 and honoring those whose lives were lost or forever changed, as well as the first responders and military members who continue to serve. Representatives from the Pierce County Sheriff ’s Office, Central Pierce Fire & Rescue, South Pierce Fire & Rescue, Civil Air Patrol, Washington State Patrol, Eatonville Police Department and local Scout troops will stand together as part of a special 25th anniversary Honor Guard and first responder tribute. Deputy Chief Adam Rosenlund of Central Pierce Fire & Rescue will deliver the keynote address. Interim Chief Zane Gibson of South Pierce Fire & Rescue, who also serves as Director of
The Honor Guard comprised of first responders and local Boy Scouts stand in reverence at Eatonville’s 2025 remembrance ceremony. The close perspective conveys the solemnity of the morning. Archive photo: September 13, 2025.
Emergency Management for Central Pierce Fire & Rescue, will emcee the ceremony. Washington State Patrol Sergeant John Dattilo will sing the National Anthem, while the Pierce County Sheriff ’s Office Honor Guard leads the flag ceremony. The morning will also include an invocation, Taps and a moment of silence. But in Eatonville, remembrance doesn’t end at the flagpole.
TURNING REMEMBRANCE INTO ACTION
Immediately following the ceremony, volunteers will spread throughout the community to complete projects benefiting local organizations and public spaces. This year’s projects include: • Eatonville Family Agency — Community Kitchen Deep Clean • Center Street Junction — Inventory & Clean-Up • Eatonville Community Garden — Greenhouse Repair & Beautification • Eatonville High School — Stadium Landscaping • Town of Eatonville — Community Trash Pick-Up • Eatonville Cemetery — Spruce-Up & Beautification • Eatonville Special Olympics & EHS Track and Field — Apple Gleaning for Cider Fest • Sound Life Church — ADA Access Improvements • Additional projects may be added as community needs are identified.
The projects are intentionally varied so that volunteers of different ages and abilities can find a meaningful way to participate. Families, students, youth groups, churches, businesses and individuals are all welcome. The Day of Service has become an Eatonville tradition. Event coordinator Ronda Litzenberger has helped organize the community effort since 2006, but this year’s 25th anniversary carries particular significance. “We cannot change what happened on September 11, but we can choose how we remember it,” Litzenberger said. “In Eatonville, remembrance means standing together, serving together and caring for the community we share.” Last year’s Day of Service demonstrated what can happen when a small community works together, with volunteers contributing more than 800 hours of service in a single morning. Perhaps even more important than the number of hours is who is serving alongside one another. Young people who were born years—or even decades—after September 11 will work beside first responders and community members who remember exactly where they were that morning. Students and Scouts will serve alongside parents and grandparents. Members of different churches and community organizations will work shoulder to shoulder. For Litzenberger, that opportunity to pass the meaning of the day to another generation is an important part of the event. “Many of our young volunteers weren’t alive on September 11,” Litzenberger said. “They may not have memories of that day, but we can help them understand the courage, sacrifice, compassion and extraordinary sense of unity that followed it. One of the best ways we can teach that is by giving them an opportunity to experience what it means to serve their neighbors.”
Families share the Volunteer Appreciation BBQ following the 2025 service projects. EVERYONE IS INVITED
EATONVILLE 9/11 DAY OF SERVICE & REMEMBRANCE
Submitted
Students and teachers serve side by side to clean graffiti from the local skate park. JAY BROWER
KEVIN BACHER, THE LIGHT IS ALL PHOTOGRAPHY
A member of the Honor Guard holds a salute during Eatonville’s 2025 remembrance ceremony. The close perspective conveys the solemnity of the morning. Archive photo: September 13, 2025.
Members of the Honor Guard salute beneath the American flag during the 2025 Eatonville 9/11 Day of Service & Remembrance. Archive photo: September 13, 2025.
Following the service projects, volunteers will come back together for a free Volunteer Appreciation BBQ from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Eatonville Methodist Church, 185 Mashell Ave. N. The community meal provides a fitting conclusion to a morning that begins and ends in much the same way—with neighbors gathered together. There is no special experience required to participate in the Day of Service. Volunteers are encouraged to wear weather-appropriate work clothes and bring gloves or basic yard tools if they have them. Most importantly, organizers hope people will simply come. At a time when national conversations can often emphasize what divides people, Eatonville’s Day of Service offers a different way to commemorate one of the most consequential days in modern American history: remember together, serve together and strengthen the community together. Twenty-five years later, the invitation is simple: Remember by choosing to serve.
Eatonville 9/11 Day of Service & Remembrance Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026 – 9 a.m. 25th Anniversary Opening Ceremony Eatonville High School Flagpole, 302 Mashell Ave. N. Immediately following Community service projects throughout Eatonville 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m. — Free Volunteer Appreciation BBQ Eatonville Methodist Church, 185 Mashell Ave. N. Everyone is welcome. Honoring the Past. Serving the Present. Building a Better Future.