In remembrance — Utahns salute the fallen

There were plenty of things Launie and Michael Belnap could have done with their three children on a sunny Saturday morning.

But Sept. 11 is important to the Riverton couple, so they brought Christian, 8, Braiden, 5, and Baylee, 6 1/2 months, to Sandy City Hall where row after row of American flags note each person who died in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center three years ago and all the military men and women who fought for freedom since then.

"It's important to show respect to the fallen soldiers and the people who lost their lives in 9/11," said Launie Belnap, shifting young Baylee in her arms. "We have to let the families know, the people serving, the people who have fallen, the people who lost their lives, that we will always have them in our thoughts and prayers.

"It's also important that we educate our own children in the patriotism that they hopefully will develop for our country," Belnap said.

She and a crowd of others gathered in Sandy for a ceremony near "The Healing Field" of donated flags attended by such dignitaries as Gov. Olene Walker, Sandy Mayor Tom Dolan and Elder Bruce D. Porter of the Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Walker said every American remembers the morning that brought "the unbelievable news" that terrorist pilots had hijacked American commercial jets and slammed two into the World Trade Center and one into the Pentagon, with a fourth — apparently diverted from its intended target by plane passengers — fatally crashing into a Pennsylvania field.

"It has brought a new patriotism to our country and our state," Walker said, praising the courage of the firefighters, police and civilians who did what they could to help, along with the military personnel now in combat and those who have died.

The Healing Field was created by Paul Swenson, owner of Colonial Flag, who originally wanted some kind of visual reminder of how many people died on that memorable day.

For an Eagle Scout project, Jacob Kincaid Smith, 14, this year created laminated biographies complete with color photos for each person who died in the 9/11 attacks. He enlisted more than 200 volunteers who helped make the large cards that are fastened to each flag and tell a little about each man and woman who perished that day.

One shows the smiling face of Jonathan Eric Briley, 43, an audiovisual technician for Windows on the World, a family man, a Baptist church deacon and amateur musician. He used to tell his sister Gwendolyn "there was nothing like" the sunrise he could see each work day from the 110th floor of the north tower of the World Trade Center.