NEW YORK (AP) — Each year on September 11, as relatives of victims gather at the 9/11 Memorial in New York City, a poignant phrase reverberates through the air: “I never got to meet you.” These words, spoken by young family members of those who perished in the attacks, capture the ongoing generational shift in the annual commemoration at ground zero.
The 9/11 anniversary tradition is a solemn reminder of the nearly 3,000 lives lost on that tragic day in 2001 when al-Qaida hijackers crashed four jetliners into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a field in southwestern Pennsylvania. As part of this tradition, victims’ relatives come together to read aloud the names of those who died. Over time, an increasing number of those readers are young people—children, nieces, nephews, and grandchildren of the victims—who were born after the attacks and never had the chance to meet their lost loved ones.
Last year, 28 young people, some born after the attacks, were among the more than 140 readers at the annual observance. This year, the 9/11 Memorial ceremony will again feature these voices, as they inherit the responsibility of commemorating and preserving the memory of the victims for future generations.
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For 13-year-old Allan Aldycki, whose grandfather Allan Tarasiewicz was a firefighter who died on 9/11, the tradition has become deeply personal. “It’s like you’re passing the torch on,” he explained. Aldycki, who has read names at the ceremony for the past two years, says it helps him feel closer to his grandfather, even though they never met. “I’ve heard so much about him that it feels like I knew him, but still, I wish I had a chance to know you,” he told the audience at last year’s event.
For Aldycki, the 9/11 anniversary tradition serves not only as a way to remember his grandfather but also to educate others. “It’s an honor to be able to teach them because you can let them know their heritage and what to never forget,” he said. His mother, Melissa Tarasiewicz, who lost her father in the attacks, admires her son’s commitment. “He reflects on everything and understands the importance of what it means to somebody,” she shared.
This tradition of reciting names extends beyond the 9/11 Memorial. Across the country, names are spoken aloud at war memorials to honor fallen soldiers, and during Yom Hashoah, Holocaust victims’ names are read in Jewish ceremonies of remembrance. The bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City is similarly commemorated, with the names of the 168 victims read annually at the memorial there.
At the Pentagon’s 9/11 ceremony, military members or officials read the names of the 184 individuals killed in the attack. Meanwhile, at the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, the names of the 40 passengers and crew who died are read by their relatives and friends.
In New York, the ceremony at the 9/11 Memorial is dedicated almost entirely to reading the names of the 2,977 victims killed across all three sites, as well as the six victims of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Each reader is assigned a subset of names, which they read aloud along with a few words about their own lost loved one. These brief tributes often offer poignant glimpses into the lives that were taken too soon.
Seventeen-year-old Capri Yarosz, who lost her uncle, firefighter Christopher Michael Mozzillo, in the attacks, reflects on how much her uncle has remained a part of her family’s life. “I think often about how, if you were still here, you would be one of my best friends, looking at colleges with me, getting me out of trouble with Mom and Dad, hanging out at the Jersey Shore,” she said at last year’s ceremony. Though she never knew her uncle, she grew up with stories about him and a baby book dedicated to his memory. Her family often says, “Chris would have loved that.”
Yarosz has read her uncle’s name twice at the 9/11 anniversary tradition and feels it is her way of keeping his memory alive. “It means a lot to me that I can kind of keep alive my uncle’s name and just keep reading everybody else’s name so that more of the upcoming generations will know,” she said. Her younger sisters have also participated in reading names, continuing the family’s involvement in the memorial event.
For Callaway Treble, 18, who lost his aunt Gabriela Silvina Waisman in the attacks, the importance of the 9/11 anniversary tradition lies in ensuring that the memory of those lost is not forgotten. “We use the term ‘never forget’ for 9/11 all the time, but keeping that in practice and making sure we don’t forget that thousands of people died in an attack on our country, that’s extremely important,” said Treble, who has been reading names at the ceremony since he was 13.
By now, many of the children of 9/11 victims—like Melissa Tarasiewicz, who was just out of high school when her father died—have grown up. Yet approximately 100 children were born after the attacks claimed the life of one of their parents. Now, young adults, are part of a generation tasked with carrying the legacy forward.
At last year’s event, Manuel DaMota Jr., whose father died in the attacks, expressed gratitude for the life his father gave him. “Though we never met, I am honored to carry your name and legacy with me. I thank you for giving me this life and family,” he said during his reading.
For many young readers, the 9/11 anniversary tradition offers a way to connect with relatives they never knew and express the loss they feel. “My whole life, my dad has said I reminded him of you,” one young reader said. Others spoke of the simple but profound things they wished they could have shared: “I wish you got to take me fishing” or “I wish I had more of you than just a picture on a frame.”
As the tradition continues, the voices of those who never met their loved ones have become a powerful part of the ceremony. “Even though I never got to meet you, I will never forget you,” one young reader declared—words that capture the enduring significance of the 9/11 anniversary tradition, as the torch is passed from one generation to the next.