SMU police and Park Cities first responders pay tribute to fallen heroes on the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks

SMU ceremony pays tribute to the first responders who lost their lives on 9/11.

911 Anniversary Ceremony at SMU

The SMU Police Department and first responders from the surrounding community commemorated the 15th anniversary of 9/11 with a solemn ceremony Friday honoring the police officers and firefighters who lost their lives in the line of duty during the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Scenes from the Ceremony


(Video by Myles Taylor/SMU News)


University police officers, along with members of the Highland Park and University Park Police and Fire Departments, participated in a combined honor guard and bell ceremony for the fallen.
(Photos by Allison Slomowitz /SMU Photography)

To symbolize the first responders’ devotion to duty, the bell ceremony included a special signal of three rings, three times each, representing the end of duty and a return to quarters. The signals ring out that “those who have selflessly given their lives for the good of their fellow man, their tasks completed, their duties well done … are going home.”

The remembrance also featured remarks from SMU President R. Gerald Turner and Police Chief Rick Shafer and a benediction by University Chaplain Stephen Rankin, as well as bagpipe performances of “Amazing Grace” and “America the Beautiful.”

Related Links

  •  featuring SMU alumna Christina Rancke ’14, whose father died on 9/11.