9/11/11 United we stand

Southern California marked the ten-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks with many major events, which gathered hundreds in mourning for the victims, and celebration for three of our most cherished national ideals: Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. A ceremony held next to the ocean at Pepperdine University honored the 9/11 victims with a display of nearly 3,000 flags on the lawn of Alumni Park, with each flag representing the lost life of a victim killed in the tragedy.

Attending the event were former California Governor Gray Davis and Deena Burnett-Baily, widow of Thomas Edward Burnett Jr., a Pepperdine alumnus and United Airlines flight 93 victim.

Burnett's three daughters Anna Clare, Halley, and Madison joined their mother on stage before her speech, paying tribute to their to their late father and other families touched personally by the tragedy of 9/11.

The Beverly Hills memorial paid tribute with a new Memorial Garden, a project that displays a steel artifact from the World Trade Center Site.

Santa Monica city Mayor Richard Bloom attended the event and explained how the events of 9/11 changed his children's lives, sparking their interest in Middle Eastern and counterterrorism studies.

"It's interesting and inspiring to me because it is your generation that is going to step into the positions of leadership that are going to take us beyond the events that have been unfolding for the past ten years as a direct result of Sept. 11," said Bloom.

Finally, the One Light ceremony at Los Angeles City Hall brought religious leaders together to unite for hope, harmony, and peacemaking.