Today marks the 24th anniversary of the deadliest terrorist attack in American history. For many service members and veterans, the memory of that morning is as vivid as if it happened yesterday - where they were, who they called, what they felt as the towers collapsed and the Pentagon burned.
But for today’s generation of service members, Sept. 11 is not a memory. It is history.
Most of the men and women now raising their right hand to enlist were not alive when Sept. 11 occurred. They never saw the smoke-filled sky of New York City, the news reports of the Pentagon under attack, or the tragedy and heroism aboard United 93. They have not witnessed an event like it in their lifetimes.
What they did grow up with was the shadow of that horrific day - two decades of war in Afghanistan, Iraq and beyond. Many in the younger generation suffered losses during that time. Fathers, older-siblings, cousins and friends were killed in combat. Young Americans watched family members deploy repeatedly, sometimes returning mentally scarred or missing limbs.
These deployments and sacrifices continue to inspire many of today’s recruits. Though they were not present for Sept. 11, they enter a military shaped by the Global War on Terrorism.
It is a unique crossroads. On one hand are the service members and veterans who joined in direct response to Sept. 11, driven by anger, duty or the desire to defend a nation under attack. For nearly 20 years, they fought bravely - from the first special operations forces and Marines in Afghanistan, to the invasion of Iraq, to those who witnessed the fall of Kabul.
For today’s generation, the motivation is different but no less meaningful. Some lost a loved one in their youth, others knew a friend who fell in Iraq or Afghanistan, and many grew up hearing stories of courage from Sept. 11 through the Global War on Terror. They serve with pride, knowing that America still faces threats abroad, that allies still depend on U.S. presence, and that the uniform still carries the weight of sacrifice.
Lance Cpl. Rylee McCollum, only five months old on Sept. 11, was among the 13 U.S. service members killed in the Abbey Gate bombing during the Afghanistan withdrawal.
Meanwhile, Lance Cpl. Alexis Ann Briggs Moradian, a graphics specialist with the 3rd Marine Division, was born in January 2002. According to a 2021 USO article, she said, “As we come up on a day in remembrance of 9/11, it puts my role as a Marine into perspective. We need to focus on unit readiness and work to prevent the past from repeating.”
That transition from the post-9/11 service members to today’s troops matters. It shows that while that day is remembered as tragic, the losses and sacrifices that followed continue to inspire Americans to serve. New recruits see Sept. 11 as the event that defines the military they’re joining, even as the nation’s focus shifts toward competition with Russia and China.
Both generations are bound by an oath to the nation. Both are linked by the belief that when America calls, someone must answer.
On this 24th anniversary, the meaning of Sept. 11 endures. It endures in the survivors of that tragic day, the veterans who still bear the scars of war, Gold Star families who remember their loved ones, and in the countless troops who served honorably ever since. It is even present in the patriotism of young men and women who were not yet born in 2001 but grew up in the shadow of that day and still choose to serve.
Remembrance is not just about looking back - it is also about recognizing how history shapes the present. Like Pearl Harbor before it, that fateful day in 2001 is moving further into the past, but the meaning of that day remains. Its legacy lives on in the patriotism of each new servicemember, ensuring that America never forgets.
