From Dearborn and Beyond, 911 Snapshots Remember 9/11

Patch.com looks at how the lives of ordinary Americans were changed on Sept. 11.

Millions of people across the country were affected by the 9/11 attacks. Some experienced the tragic loss of a loved one, some found an inspiring way to help those who were grieving, and others experienced a political awakening. To help reflect the endless diversity of their experiences, Patch looked out across our sites to pull together 911 snapshots of everyday Americans whose lives were changed by the events of that day. From across the country, Dearborn Patch and hundreds of others captured the faces, keepsakes, memorials, ceremonies, flags, fund-raisers, deployments and the still-raw emotions that followed the attacks. Taken together they create a powerful mosaic that is large in scope but often deeply personal. Click through to see …

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9/11 Observances Around Metro Detroit

Here are observances and events marking the 10-year anniversary of Sept. 11 and the attacks on America.

There will be a national moment of remembrance at 1 p.m.; many Metro Detroit communities are participating. 9/11 Remembrance & Candlelight Vigil at the Capitol: The Michigan State Police, Emergency Management & Homeland Security Division will hold a 9/11 Remembrance & Candlelight Vigil from 7-9 p.m.  on the East Lawn of the Capitol Building in Lansing. First responders are encouraged to attend in uniform. The Capitol is located at 100 N. Capitol Ave. The Metroparks and CBC Detroit Radio are holding a special rememberance for 9/11 to honor victims and thank protectors.  All seven Metroparks will have “9/11 Michigan Remembers” tribute banners.  Lake Erie Metropark in Brownstown and Metro Beach Metropark in Harrison Township have special …

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9/11 Reflections

Dearborn Museum Celebrates the Chance to Paint an Accurate Picture of Arab-Americans

Conceived long before 2001, Dearborn's Arab American National Museum took on an increasingly important roll after 9/11. Here's why.

More than 50,000 have visited the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn each year since its opening in 2005. But while the museum was conceived of much earlier, Deputy Director Devon Akmon says there was some anxiousness on the part of the founders as to what role the museum would play in the community after Sept. 11, 2001. “There was anxiety within the community," he says. "To put yourself out there, to share your story at a time when there was criticism of where your money was going and what it was supporting … it took a lot of trust.” And for Dearborn nonprofit ACCESS, the umbrella organization that dreamed of and built the one-of-a-kind museum, there was anxiety in not knowing how the community–and the world at large–would react to…

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9/11 Reflections

Dearborn Mayor Reflects On Anticipated, Actual Impacts of 9/11 on His City

Jack O'Reilly wasn't mayor of Dearborn on Sept. 11, 2001, but he has seen the consequences–both good and bad–that day has held on his city ever since.

When the Twin Towers fell on Sept. 11, 2001, Jack O’Reilly wasn’t mayor of Dearborn. Then a member of City Council, he wasn’t actually in Dearborn that day, either. But he remembers where he was. “We were in the Upper Peninsula at a conference (for Michigan Works),” he recalls. “We had to cross the bridge coming back and they were worried the bridge was closed. That initial sense of not knowing the extent of what was going on was really amazing. I was thinking about my family and I still remember that whole emotional rush of the uncertainty.” “Nobody could quite be sure what was going on,” he continues. “There was that moment of real panic about the extent and how many of these are going on and is it going to happen in any other part of …

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9/11 Reflections

Dearborn Native Enlisted After 9/11, But Continues to Serve Out of Patriotism

Sgt. Steven Balderrama has served nine years in the Air Force and Army. From his station in Iraq, he told Dearborn Patch why he does it and what he misses about his hometown.

Every military service member has different reasons why they decide to enlist, whether it’s to gain funding for college, to continue a family tradition or just to get a good job to support their family. For U.S. Army Sergeant and Dearborn native Steven Balderrama, his reasons were clear. “I decided to enlist back in 2002 because of Sept. 11,” he says without hesitation. “Mostly it was patriotic pride, at the time. Being from Dearborn, I had a big connection with the Muslim community. So after 9/11, I got involved to just kind of work through it.” Since then, Balderrama, an Edsel Ford High School graduate and the first member of his family to enlist, has served four tours of duty–two in the Air Force and two in the Army, including his …

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Kevin micheals

12:02 am on Thursday, September 8, 2011

Serving in Tikrit Iraq and will not be staying with the army   more ›

9/11 Reflections

A Decade After 9/11, Community Leader Continues Fight for Peace

Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan and InterFaith Leadership Council co-founder Victor Ghalib Begg admits that prayer can't solve everything.

Victor Ghalib Begg has spent his adult life fighting stereotypes. In the 1980s, the Bloomfield Hills-based businessman founded the Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan. In 1993, Begg founded the Muslim Unity Center mosque Oakland County. And on Sept. 12, 2001 in Dearborn–the first day what would eventually become the InterFaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit met–Begg was there, leading the charge to ensure that 9/11 didn't mean that they had to start over from scratch. "We met the day after 9/11 in a Dearborn mosque and decided we were going to do an interfaith service," Begg recalls. "At that meeting, I raised my hand and said, ‘We’ve got to think of doing more than a prayer service. Prayers are good, but we’ve got to …

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