Detroit marks 25 years since Sept. 11 attacks with riverfront ceremony

At 8:46 a.m. Friday morning, at the same time the first plane struck the World Trade Center North Tower 25 years ago, those gathered along Detroit's riverfront paused to remember.

For Kenny Zillis, that memory is deeply personal.

"A moment of clarity came over me as I realized that all three Zillis boys were at Ground Zero at the same time, doing our job for our country. My brothers on the pile, me overhead at 18,000 feet," said Zillis.

Zillis says both of his brothers were New York City firefighters while he was in the air, helping secure New York's airspace in the days after the attacks.

"The days and weeks after 9/11, there was a sense of nationalism, of patriotism like my generation has never seen. American flags were lined outside every business and every house," said Zillis.

The ceremony also honored those who continue to serve, including law enforcement and Homeland Security personnel across Michigan.

Republican Congressman John James, who served in the Army after 9/11 and is now running for governor, spoke about the unity that followed the attacks.

"Sept. 11 did not ask whether his victims were Republicans or Democrats. It did not ask their race, their religion, their income and where they were born. The smoke fell on all of us," said James.

While Secretary of State and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jocelyn Benson did not speak at Friday's ceremony, she marked the anniversary in a statement posted to social media.

"Twenty-five years ago today, we suffered a permanent wound to our nation. We lost loved ones, friends, and neighbors in an attempt to shake the foundation of who we are as Americans.

But they did not succeed.

Out of tragedy, we saw the best in one another. First responders running towards danger to save lives, neighbors coming together to support one another, heroes answering the call to protect our nation as my husband did, and a nation unified in forging a better path forward. That is who we are, and that is who we will always be.

On this 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, we must never forget who we are when we stand united against hate and division."

The riverfront ceremony ended with a moment of silence and a reminder that for those who served, survived, and lost someone that day, remembering is still personal, 25 years later.