By Sean CW Korsgaard
CP Reporter
Where were you on the morning of September 11, 2001?
No American who was alive at the time will likely ever forget where they were that shocking September 11 morning, even 16 years later. Nobody knows that more intimately or more personally than the men and women of the U.S. Military who have served on the frontlines of the War on Terror for more than a decade.
Like countless other Americans, the Garrison Commander of Fort A.P. Hill, Lt. Col. Andrew Jordan, says he will never forget where he was, or how he felt that day.
“I was a young, fire-breathing lieutenant with the 82nd Airborne, and all I could think of at the time was ‘I’m ready to go take the fight to the enemy’,” said Jordan. “Since that day I’ve deployed to Iraq four times, Afghanistan one time, and served in other areas of the middle east on various occasions, and you know what? I’m still ready to take the fight to the enemy.”
Speaking before a small crowd of soldiers, first responders and civilians gathered before the Virginia Congressional Medal of Honor Memorial on Fort A.P. Hill, Lt. Col. Jordan did more than just memorialize the 2,996 Americans who were killed in the attacks, he spoke of the impact it had on a generation, and of the wars it started that we’re still fighting 16 years later.
“September 11 changed more than just the skyline of New York City, the Pentagon, or a field in Stonycreek, Pennsylvania, the attacks changed a generation of Americans, our Army, and our world,” said Jordan. “That tragic morning fortified America with pride and patriotism, and it created a spirit of service in a new generation. To me, and for my generation, September 11 means the same thing that December 7 meant for my grandfather and his generation.”
That 9/11 generation includes more than five million Americans who have served in the U.S. military in various capacities over the past 16 years. More than 6,800 soldiers have been killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and several other locations around the world serving in the Global War on Terror.
Of the millions who have served in the military over the past generation, Fort A.P. Hill has played a substantial role in the lives and training of tens of thousands of them, as the base took on new life as one of the most critical military training facilities east of the Mississippi. Thousands of soldiers from all branches of the military have come to Fort A.P. Hill over the years for training exercises, often in preparation for being deployed overseas. Of the soldiers based at Fort A.P. Hill themselves, hundreds have deployed themselves in varying capacities, often more than once.
While for those who were alive to witness 9/11 will never forget where they were on that morning, the last few years, and the next few years have shown that the generation that witnessed 9/11 is being replaced by one that wasn’t alive when it happened.
That, according to Jordan, is why memorializing the nearly 2,976 men, women and children were killed in the attacks, as well as remembering the countless soldiers who have spent the better part of a generation fighting several wars against the forces responsible, has become more important than ever.
“My oldest son was just 14 months old on 9/11, and there are people enlisting today who were only toddlers at the time, and we need to be ready to pass the torch,” said Jordan. “9/11 is day we remember those we lost that day, where we honor those who have fallen in the many battles since, and honor those we serve with today, and as long as we do what we can to keep them in our hearts and minds, we’ve done right by them.”
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