Officials call for return to unity seen after Sept. 11 attacks

LAKEVILLE -- First responders paused briefly before entering the Twin Towers to rescue those injured by the terrorist attack moments earlier.

They stopped to tell each other goodbye.

In a voice that shook with emotion, Lakeville Fire Chief Michael O’Brien related that story during a ceremony at the Lakeville Fire Station to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

That day’s events, which happened before some Lakeville Fire Department members were born, changed America, speakers at the ceremony noted.

In the days and weeks that followed, State Rep. Norman Orrall noted, people put their differences aside. He urged people to reflect on that sentiment.

“We can have our differences, but we can support each other, we can have each other’s backs,’’ he said.

Select Board member Chris Plonka expressed a similar sentiment. “We are neighbors first,’’ he said.

First responders on that day, Plonka stated, “chose courage over surrender.’’

Thousands died that day. But they were not the only victims, Plonka noted.

He remembered those killed in conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan that resulted from Sept. 11 and people who suffered and died from the aftereffects of the toxic air the collapses caused.

“They too were among the fallen,’’ Plonka said.

Orrall urged residents to appreciate their families, their communities and first responders who “were the ones that did the work that day.’’

They deserve public backing for all they do, he said, not just during monumental tragedies such as Sept. 11 but in the fires, crimes, accidents and other incidents they respond to regularly.

“We need to support them,’’ he said. “I’m so grateful that in Lakeville you do.’’