TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Tallahassee Civil Air Patrol held a 9/11 remembrance and flagpole dedication ceremony Thursday night at the Tallahassee International Airport.
It is in honor of Friday's 14th anniversary of September 11th.
'Woodmen Life', formerly known as 'Woodmen of the World', donated a 25 foot flagpole to the Tallahassee Composite Squadron United States Air Force Auxiliary to replace their old wooden flagpole.
The group welcomed local leaders and Civil Air Patrol cadets to a ceremony and their open house. Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum spoke during the event, thanking everyone who helped out with the recovery and cleanup efforts from 9/11.
According to Captain Wayne Hooks, spokesperson for the Florida Wing of the Civil Air Patrol, September 11, 2001 is significant to the organization, because they were the first civilian airplane that flew over ground zero.
"They had to know what's out there, what they needed to move in to help people and what they needed to move in to clear the site," said Capt. Hooks, "and on 9/12 aircraft from the New York wing of the Civil Air Patrol were in the air taking photographs of ground zero. In fact, today, any photographs you look at in any newspaper, magazine, books, websites of ground zero were taken by Civil Air Patrol."
The Tallahassee Civil Air Patrol is looking for more members.
It's a voluntary commitment, and no prior military service is necessary.
The 73-year-old Air Force Auxiliary prides themselves on emergency services, cadet programs, and aerospace education.
For more information, visit fl432.flwg.us or send an email to chooks@flwg.us.
Video coming soon. Check back with www.wtxl.tv.
