New Yorkers must ‘never forget’ 9/11 — and turn sorrow into service

Twenty-five years ago, we made a sacred promise.

With thick black smoke still billowing across a bright blue September sky, with mangled steel and debris still burning where the Twin Towers had just stood, we vowed to “never forget.”

To never forget the lives lost, the families shattered, the heroes who ran into the fire and never came back.

A quarter-century later, those two words, “never forget,” still mean something to us.

They still demand something of us.

Not just today; not just at the memorial services, vigils and name readings.

But every day.

“Never forget” means fighting for the brave first responders who dug through the rubble at Ground Zero and who continue to suffer and die from 9/11-related illnesses.

“Never forget” means standing up for the police officers who protect our city when their resources are threatened.

And “never forget” means refusing to let this solemn anniversary become a source of division among us.

Because some of the most powerful lessons of 9/11 can be found in the people who endured unimaginable loss — and chose not to answer it with anger or despair.

They turned pain into purpose, and turned sorrow into service.

On Friday, I’m thinking about Jillian Suarez, who celebrated her ninth birthday on Sept. 9, 2001.

Two days later her father, Officer Ramon Suarez, lost his life saving others, including a pregnant mother, from the World Trade Center.

Jillian now serves in the NYPD, just like her dad.

I’m thinking about Monica Rogan, who was 10 when her father Matthew was killed while evacuating people from a hotel at the World Trade Center site.

Matthew was a firefighter who dreamed of one day becoming a nurse.

Today, Monica is living out that dream as an RN.

I’m thinking about Josephine Smith, who grew up playing with toy fire trucks and planning to one day work alongside her father, Kevin.

She never got the chance.

But in 2014, Josephine became the first daughter of a firefighter killed on 9/11 to join the FDNY.

And I’m thinking about Joseph Vigiano Jr., who was eight years old when he lost both his father and his uncle on 9/11.

Just last week, Joseph was promoted to NYPD sergeant, carrying his family’s tradition of service forward.

I was proud to shake his hand and meet his mom, who is a retired police officer.

These New Yorkers represent the very best of us.

They remind us that remembrance is not simply about looking backward.

It’s about deciding what we carry forward.

For some, that may mean putting on a uniform and protecting their neighbors.

That calling is especially important today, when so many volunteer fire and EMS companies are struggling to recruit new members.

But service doesn’t require a badge.

It can mean mentoring a child who needs someone in their corner, delivering a meal to a homebound senior or volunteering at a house of worship.

It means giving your time to a cause larger than yourself.

And no matter our profession, our talents or our politics, we can all stand up for the people who have sacrificed to keep us safe.

We can demand that first responders and survivors suffering from 9/11-related illnesses receive the health care and benefits they have earned.

We can support the men and women who protect us and make sure they have the resources to do their jobs.

And we can remember that “never forget” isn’t simply a slogan on a bumper sticker.

It is a sacred pledge.

Not just to remember what happened that day — but to remember the spirit and strength it inspired.

Today, tomorrow and for the next 25 years, let us find the strength to uphold that pledge.

Let us refuse to allow hatred, suspicion or division to diminish the spirit New Yorkers showed the world 25 years ago.

Jillian. Monica. Josephine. Joseph.

They have spent their lives showing us what “never forget” can mean.

We serve.

We protect one another.

We care for those who are still suffering.

And even in moments of profound disagreement, we recognize the ties that bind us together as New Yorkers and as Americans.

That’s how we honor those we lost.

That’s how we keep their memory alive.

And that is how we never forget.

Kathy Hochul is the 57th governor of New York state.