First responders, local officials and community members gathered at Mobile Memorial Gardens in Tillman’s Corner on a Thursday morning to mark the anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, honoring first responders who have died in the line of duty since that day.
The annual ceremony was held near the cemetery’s Heroes Garden, a site dedicated to the region’s police officers, firefighters and paramedics. This year’s gathering singled out the memory of Rassie G. Smith Jr., a longtime veteran of the Mobile Police Department and the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office, with a wreath placed in his honor.
Several speakers reflected on the sacrifices made by first responders both on September 11, 2001, and in the years since. Richard Landolt, a retired Navy rear admiral who now serves as executive director of public safety for the Mobile Police Department, praised those who “go rushing into buildings everyone else is trying to get out of.”
A deputy chief with Mobile Fire-Rescue shared a personal story about his grandfather, who served aboard a Navy PT boat during World War II. He recalled his grandfather saying that the greatest fear was not danger itself, but failing to fulfill one’s oath — a sentiment the deputy chief said still resonates with today’s first responders.
The ceremony’s keynote speaker, a former New York City firefighter who had been at the scene of the World Trade Center attacks, kept his remarks brief but noted that 9/11 commemorations honor a broad range of people: first responders, military personnel and civilians alike. He now leads a volunteer fire department in the Fowl River community south of Mobile.
A sheriff’s office chaplain who led the ceremony emphasized that the day’s meaning extends beyond a single date, saying the observance honors everyone lost since the attacks as well.
Mobile County Sheriff Sam Cochran used his remarks to draw a broader connection between the unity many Americans felt after 9/11 and the tensions he said now strain relationships between law enforcement and the communities they serve. He acknowledged that instances of police misconduct have occurred and said such conduct should be condemned, but argued that individual grievances are sometimes unfairly generalized against entire agencies. Rebuilding trust, he said, requires outreach and mutual understanding from both officers and residents.
The Archdiocese of Mobile also marked the anniversary with its annual “Blue Mass” at the Cathedral-Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in downtown Mobile, honoring police officers and other first responders. Organizers said hundreds of local fifth-graders from Mobile and Baldwin county schools were expected to attend the Mass alongside the public.
Together, the events reflected a recurring theme in Mobile’s annual 9/11 observances: gratitude for the men and women who respond to emergencies, paired with an ongoing community conversation about how to sustain public trust in the agencies that protect it.