National News

The Klatt family of Apache Junction gathered with more than 50 people Saturday morning for Tempe's Healing Field memorial, commemorating the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

“It's just so sad, it's just so senseless,” said, Mike Klatt, 35, emotions welling up in his face as he reflected on the lives of families who must now carry on without a loved one.

Recovering in the wake of the attacks is made easier by the support of others, said Donna Bird, of Tempe, whose husband, Gary Bird, died at the World Trade Center when it was attacked five years ago.

“I truly believe and have experienced over the last five years, we heal much better when we heal together,” Bird said, thanking the audience for their support.

But the threat of new attacks still exists, Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., told the crowd.

The flags are a “stirring” reminder of needless death, Kyl said, promising that government leaders are committed to making sure it never happens again.

The strength of the memorial, which lasts through Monday, is the personal way people experience it, Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman said.

People are in awe at first, unsure of whether to enter the field of 2,988 flags, each representing a victim of the attacks, Hallman said.

When visitors finally walk through and experience the field firsthand, they come out “very much changed” by an appreciation for the tragedy, he said.

Those who attended said it was the least they could do to honor the Sept. 11 victims.

Doreen Romney, 55, of Tempe, went to high school with a transit police officer who died at the World Trade Center.

“It makes me feel like I didn't let the day go by without remembering and paying them the respect for the sacrifice they made,” said Romney, who grew up about 20 miles outside New York City and has lived in Arizona for nearly 30 years.