At the Fruit Street Bridge, Remembering Sept. 11
A University of La Verne photojournalism student, who was born after the attacks, listened to a group of La Verne residents reflect on the day and its aftermath.
On Friday, Sept. 11, a group of about a dozen people gathered at the Fruit Street bridge in La Verne. They held American flags and waved at passing cars on the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that killed thousands of people in the United States.
The gathering included members of the La Verne Coalition of Concerned Citizens, who said they want to use their voices to speak out about issues affecting the community.
La Verne resident Rick Bowen, a candidate for the District 3 City Council seat and member of the La Verne Coalition of Concerned Citizens, said he hoped their presence on the bridge would encourage people to remember the attacks and give them a small way to show their support. As I spoke with participants on the bridge, drivers honked and waved as they passed.
“It’s a heavy day. We got to see it happen with our own eyes. I can hear about history, read about it, but this I witnessed for myself,” said La Verne resident Cynthia Tiner.
First photo: Community members hold American flags and wave to passing cars from the Fruit Street bridge over the 210 Freeway in La Verne on Sept. 11. Second photo: La Verne Coalition of Concerned Citizens member Kathy Newlon. Third photo: La Verne Coalition of Concerned Citizens member Cynthia Tiner. Fourth photo: La Verne Coalition of Concerned Citizens member Rick Bowen, left, and a community member. Photos by Isabella Huerta for La Verne Daily News
Several people told me they remembered the fear they felt after the attacks.
“Although I was just 14 at the time, I remember being terrified,” said La Verne resident Lauren Kandalaft. “I was thinking, ‘Is this going to happen where I live now?’”
Bowen said people are still shocked. “You can see it when you talk to them, that's why we got to say never forget, because it could happen tomorrow.”
I wasn’t alive on Sept. 11, 2001. Photographing the gathering gave me a chance to listen to people who were and to think about how their memories shape my understanding of that day.
My mother, Emma Meza, remembers driving to work that day. “Even though I knew where to go, I felt lost,” she told me. “I didn’t know what would be of my future, or if I even had one.”
At the bridge on Friday, Claremont resident Emma Mendoza told me: “Americans, they love America, but I think sometimes maybe they take it for granted. I don't take it for granted."
“I am so grateful to God that brought me into this beautiful country,” Mendoza said. She was born in Mexico and moved to the United States when she was 6. “I’m very patriotic, and I raised my kids to be very patriotic, and my grandkids too,” she said.
Tiner reflected on what people might carry forward from that day. “I think it taught us as a nation to try to be consciously aware what other people are going through,” she said.
Listening to the people on the bridge helped me understand how differently people carry that day—through fear, gratitude, grief, and hope.
“I like to think that we're still hopeful. We have to live in a hopeful world. We have to. We have to try and make this a better place,” Tiner said.
Local Events Calendar
