Southport marks 25th anniversary of Sept. 11 with local memorial ceremony

Southport City held a public memorial on Sept. 11, 2026, to mark the 25th anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks, with prayers, the national anthem and remarks from local first responders. The program included displays of artifacts from the World Trade Center and a schedule of ceremonial flag rollouts.

The event opened with a brief greeting from Kevin, who then performed the national anthem. An emcee thanked community sponsors — including Taylor's Tins and the South Essex, New Jersey, Fire Department for loaning a piece of World Trade Center steel — and described the program, which included an invocation, a welcome address, honor guard wreath presentation, and multiple flag rollouts. "In one single moment, life was never the same," the emcee said during opening remarks.

Organizers invited attendees to view three memorial tables: red for firefighters, blue for law enforcement and white for emergency medical technicians, and said a video reciting victims' names would play after the ceremony. Flags were scheduled to unroll in sequence, with a third flag honoring the Pentagon at 09:37 and the Shanksville, Pennsylvania tribute at 10:07 a.m. The ceremony concluded with bell tolling and a performance by the Wilmington Pipes and Drums.