Members of the Stony Brook University community gathered on September 11, 2025, to mark the 24th anniversary of the September 11 attacks and honor the 21 alumni who died that day. The ceremony began at 8:46 am with campus chimes ringing 21 times, representing each alumnus lost in the tragedy.
Throughout the day, students, faculty, and staff visited the Memorial Arch and placed white roses as a tribute. The event also featured activities such as planting pinwheels in the Memorial Pinwheel Garden to commemorate those who died.
Janet Masini, director of Alumni Programs, said, “The Alumni Association and University Advancement are honored to be a part of the university remembrance of 9/11 as the pinwheel garden remembers the 21 alumni and community members that were lost that day.”
A new initiative was introduced this year by the Campus Beautification Committee. The “Enduring Memories” mural project invited participants to contribute drawings and messages reflecting their thoughts or memories about September 11. The completed mural will be unveiled for next year’s milestone anniversary.
Mitch Trinka, digital media manager for University Advancement and committee member, commented on student participation: “There are some people here on campus where 9/11 isn’t still fresh in their mind. Just seeing how many students are coming up here to draw or write, and what memories they have, is wonderful. Many of them don’t even know that we lost alumni, so we’re making connections here, and we are collecting these memories to display them next year.”
For some attendees like Eliza Rein—a junior linguistics major—the commemoration was personal. Rein wrote a message honoring their father’s work as a Verizon first responder after the attacks. “I wasn’t around at the time, but it’s pretty deeply impacted my family,” Rein said. “Every year he needs to go to the hospital for cancer screenings because of all the smoke and tar he inhaled. When my mother goes into the city, she can’t look up for too long without getting shaky and overwhelmed with memories. So it’s a wound that’s still open in our family.” Rein added: “It feels really good to be able to contribute to a public project like this.”
Other events included a blood drive, meditation sessions for reflection and remembrance, and a screening at Charles B. Wang Center featuring documentaries alongside a segment about Benjamin Luft, MD—director of Stony Brook’s World Trade Center Wellness Program—who documented first responders’ stories through an oral history project.
The names of all Stony Brook alumni killed on September 11 are engraved on both sides of Milton Glaser’s Memorial Arch.
In her message to campus members ahead of this year’s observance, President Andrea Goldsmith wrote: “I can still remember exactly where I was when I first heard of the unfolding tragedy, and the shock, fear, uncertainty and heartbreak as I learned of the damage wrought and lives lost that day,” she wrote. “I also vividly recall how our country united to support one another in the aftermath of those unfathomable events. Since my arrival to Stony Brook, I have been moved by how supportive you all are of one another, particularly in challenging times. I know that spirit will infuse the events surrounding our September 11 reflections and comfort all those in our community affected by the events of that tragic day.”