This Saturday will mark 20 years since the Sept. 11 attacks. On Thursday, Connecticut paused to remember the 161 victims with ties to Connecticut. The state holds its memorial ceremony before 9/11 so families can also attend the one in New York City.
For 20 years, they’ve been missed. Their names are etched in stone next to their age and where they were. Tara Henwood Butzbaugh knows exactly where her brother’s name is.
“John worked for Cantor Fitzgerald. He was 35 years old. He was on the 105th floor of Tower One,” said Butzbaugh.
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He should be 55 this year. John Henwood left behind a wife and two children, who were only 5 and 2 years old on Sept. 11, 2001.
“He was funny and warm and loving,” said Butzbaugh. “It’s just devastating. It’s devastating to be this long without him. But I’m really blessed that we had him, and we’ll always miss him.”
At the state’s official memorial in Westport, 161 people with ties to Connecticut are remembered. All 161 names were read out loud at the ceremony. State leaders as well as family members of those who died spoke about that day and how they feel 20 years later. People who attended placed flowers on the memorial and touched the plaque that holds the name of their loved one. For so many, this isn’t just a national tragedy but a personal one.
But as difficult as it is, family, friends, and strangers came together to mourn, to grieve, and to remember.
“It’s really important to be here with everyone else to remember and to reflect and to show our resilience and our love and that we truly will never forget,” said Butzbaugh.
