Firefighters reach out to touch a beam from the fallen World Trade Center last year as crowds show up in support of the first responders climbing 110 floors at the Dallas 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb. (Wyndi Veigel/C&S Media.)

Monday, Sept. 11 marks the 16th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the United States and Farmersville will show honor and remembrance in a variety of ways.

Police, firefighters and EMS will participate in the annual Public Safety Sunday at First United Methodist Church.

Services start at 10:45 a.m. and the community is invited to attend the church service and share thanks for first responders in their local community.

Each year, local first responders attend church together with their families and friends on the Sunday preceding the 9/11 anniversary. Churches rotate hosting Public Safety Sunday.

Guns and Hoses

In support of a cause that benefits the families of fallen first responders, officers and firefighters from across Collin County step into the boxing ring Saturday, Sept. 9 as combatants in the Guns and Hoses Foundation of North Texas fundraiser.

Answering the 16th annual Guns and Hoses Boxing Tournament call is Terry Evans from Farmersville who will face off against an area police officer. The bouts start at 7:30 p.m. at Allen Event Center. Tickets are $20 each and are available at the event center or though the foundation website gunsandhosestx.com.

The event features bouts between police officers and firefighters who are matched against each other according to size and experience. Boxing participants are required to have no less than two months training for the event. There are 19 first responders listed on the fight card this year.

Guns and Hoses Foundation was formed in 2002 and is dedicated to assisting families of fallen first responders who lost their lives in the line of duty, as well as contributing to children’s charities supported by area police and fire departments.

Dallas 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb

In one of the ultimate honors of remembrance for 9/11, the seventh annual event will be held Saturday. Sept. 9 around 8 a.m. in downtown Dallas.

Choreographed around the events of Sept. 11, 2001, the climb incorporates symbolism in a physical setting. The event begins with an opening ceremony steeped in traditional fire and police memorial service elements.

A moment of silence at 8:46 a.m. marks the time Flight 11 hit the North Tower. Immediately following, 343 firefighters, 70 law enforcement, and nine EMS personnel begin their trek up the stairs – 110 floors – equivalent to the height of the

former World Trade Center Twin Towers. Each climber carries the name, picture, and accountability tag of a firefighter or police officer who was killed at Ground Zero on Sept. 11, 2001. Once finished, participants place the name of the individual they climbed for on an accountability board.

Local fallen public safety officers are acknowledged and honored as well.

The event is family-oriented and open to the public. There will be activities such as an obstacle course, trying

on bunker gear, and touring different first responder vehicles and vendor areas during the climb.

The event is free to the public and is held in downtown Dallas at the Renaissance Tower located at 1201 Elm St.

This year’s climbers’ fundraising will benefit Concerns of Police Survivors-Metroplex Chapter, National Fallen

Firefighters Foundation, National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, Texas Line of Duty Death Task Force, and National EMS Memorial Service.

Many first responders from throughout Collin County will be participating in the climb including firefighters from McKinney, Lucas, Murphy, Sachse and Wylie.

By Wyndi Veigel • News Editor • [email protected]

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