ARCANUM, OHIO – Three military veterans and former federal agents have created a video honoring the victims, families, first responders, and military personnel affected by the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the 20-year Global War on Terror.
The video marks the 25th anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon near Washington, as well as the crash of United Airlines Flight 93 near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
Featured speakers are Ken Wall, a former FBI supervisor; Tim Shaw, a former FBI special agent; and Mark Pohl, a former supervisory special agent.
The three men served with the FBI or U.S. Department of Defense and are veterans representing the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps.
In the video, they recount their experiences responding to Ground Zero at the World Trade Center and the Flight 93 crash site. They also discuss their service in Iraq and Afghanistan during the Global War on Terror.
Pohl said the men believed it was important to preserve their firsthand accounts while honoring those whose lives were lost or forever changed.
“We thought it was very important to share our stories on this 25th anniversary of the attacks to honor the over 3,000 victims and their families,” Pohl said. “We also wanted to provide information that could help educate young people about what happened.”
Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the coordinated terrorist attacks. Thousands more were injured, and many first responders and others later developed illnesses associated with their work at the attack sites.
The attacks also led to two decades of military operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere. The video recognizes the service and sacrifices of U.S. military personnel and everyone who participated in or was affected by the Global War on Terror.
Pohl said educating younger generations is especially important because many of today’s students were born years after the attacks.
“Even after all these years, we want to do whatever we can to help prevent something like this from ever happening again,” he said.
The video serves as both a remembrance and an educational record, connecting the experiences of those who responded on American soil with those who served overseas in the years that followed.
