A crowd of thousands gathered at the NIU Convocation Center Wednesday night for a 9/11 community remembrance ceremony.

The program, titled “We Became One on 9/11” included presentations by DeKalb and Sycamore firefighters, who were called to help at Ground Zero, as well as State Senator Brad Burzynski and NIU President John Peters.

Student presence at the event was sparse compared to the large showing of DeKalb and Sycamore residents, but it was visible.

Political science major James Guest heard about the event from fliers distributed by Campus Crusade for Christ.

“I wanted to spend some time remembering and hear what the speakers had to say about their experiences,” he said.

Guest isn’t the only one to hear of the event through a place of worship. A large number of audience members were informed of the event through their churches.

“This has all been done by Reverend Mike Massey, the pastor at Glad Tidings Church right here in DeKalb,” said Joe Coots, marketing manager for the Convocation Center. “This whole thing has been put on by him, we’re just giving him a place to do it … we’re the biggest facility in town that can house this many people.”

Coots echoed the sentiments of many people in the audience who were glad that a space as large as the Convocation Center was available.

“I think it’s just a fantastic thing not only for the university but for DeKalb to give people a platform to come and observe and remember,” Coots said.

Members of ROTC greeted people at the door and handed out programs. ROTC member Todd Gross said he felt so inspired after 9/11 that he was compelled to join the service.

“After Sept. 11, this is definitely something I wanted to do, be in the ROTC program,” Gross said. “I want to do something to help my country.”

Members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion, along with local firefighters and police, presented the American flag colors before speakers took to the podium.

NIU President John Peters spoke to the audience about remembering the togetherness and community that many experienced after the attacks.

“[I hope] that we are inspired to open our hearts and minds to people who are different than us,” Peters said. “That we create a living memorial to the 3,000 innocent people who went to work on a beautiful day 12 months ago and never returned home to their families or their loved ones.”

Peters believes that everyone has learned valuable lessons from the Sept. 11 attacks.

“We are wiser now,” he said. “Sadder, but wiser.”

After Peters’ speech, local firefighters spoke of their personal experiences in New York City; and Sycamore firefighter Tom Pritchett showed the audience slides from his trip to Ground Zero.

The audience seemed to appreciate having the opportunity to reflect.

“It’s just a time to pause, and think about all the people who were lost and what happened to our country,” said Lela Green, a DeKalb resident. “It’s kind of a time to pause and reflect on things.”