As Sunday will mark the 10th anniversary of the attacks of September 11th, 2001- take a look at three national memorials that honor the fallen, celebrate the heroes, and give the country inspiration to carry on.

The national 9/11 Memorial in new york

New York City Prepares For 10th Anniversary Of September 11 Attacks
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in 2004, a jury of 12 regular citizens chose the design for the national monument for 9/11.  Fitting, as the 3,000 citizens who died that day were 'regular joes' as well.

The memorial is called "Reflecting Absence". Two reflecting pools sit in the bases of what used to be the sites of the Twin Towers. Waterfalls bank down into the pools- with the names of the 3,00 victims etched along the side.  As you can see above, at night beams of light will emit from the sides of the pools into the Manhattan skyline.

Here's more from CBS News on the site- you have to see the video of the waterfalls- very cool- along with an interview with the architect of the memorial:

You can take your own virtual visit of the memorial at 911Memorial.org

The pentagon memorial

Visitors View Pentagon Memorial After Bin Laden is Killed
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184 people, ranging in age from 3  to 71, were killed when American Airlines flight 77 was flown into the Pentagon on September 11th 2001. Most were on the plane, some were in the Pentagon.

The Pentagon Memorial was the first national monument in honor of 9/11- it opened in 2008.

The memorial does a wonderful job to remember and honor each of the victims.

The memorial is like a plaza in front of the Pentagon featuring 184 benches- each honoring a victim of the attack. The benches are laid out so that if you are reading a name on one and facing the sky- that person was on the plane; if you are facing the Pentagon- they were inside.

The Pentagon Memorial's website is great- a timeline of photos of its creation;  biographies of each victim and informative videos. Very cool.

VOA did a great piece on the memorial right before its dedication:

The flight 93 national memorial

Remembrance Held At Flight 93 Crash Site
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Sitting on 2,200 acres in Somerset County in Pennsylvania- The Flight 93 Memorial is largest memorial for the attacks of 9/11.

40 people died on that flight- many more would have died if the heroic passengers of flight 93 had not intervened the four terrorists' plans.

The first phase of the memorial is complete- A wall on the site follows the flight path of the airliner as it descended into the field.

The  memorial will also feature  a grove of 40 trees to represent each victim- and a 93 foot tower with majestic  wind chimes.

The memorial is set to be finished by 2014.

Again, from CBS News- a nice expose on the memorial:

You can follow the progress of the site at The Flight 93 Memorial website.


Victims.

Heroes.

Americans that will not be forgotten.

 

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