MAYPORT, Fla. – The sound of buzzing saws and hammering nails filled the air Thursday morning on Mayport Road, where volunteers with Beaches Habitat for Humanity gathered to build the first of 44 affordable homes planned for the site.
RELATED: 24 years later: Remembering 9/11 across Northeast Florida
But this wasn’t just another construction project.
In honor of the lives lost in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, volunteers and members of the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department came together to turn tragedy into service.
“It’s a tribute to those who lost their lives on 9/11,” Steve Gilbert, CEO of Beaches Habitat for Humanity, said. “We are so blessed to have four acres here to build 44 affordable homes.”
The first home being built will be gifted to a local veteran — a symbolic gesture on a day that continues to carry deep emotional weight across the country.
Among those present was Jacksonville Fire Chief Percy Golden II, who said the events of Sept. 11, 2001, left a lasting impression on him.
“We remember that day. I remember that day vividly when it happened,” Golden said. “Most people who choose this career are about service, and they care about helping people. With my dad being a firefighter, that was all we were taught was service.”
Golden wasn’t a firefighter at the time of the attacks, but witnessing the courage of first responders running into danger helped solidify his own path into public service.
Thursday’s build was part of a nationwide movement to mark 9/11 through acts of community service — a way to honor the nearly 3,000 lives lost by giving back.
As volunteers worked together under the Florida sun, their message was simple: We remember. We serve. We build.
Each hammer swing and drilled screw served as both construction and commemoration — a tangible reminder that even in grief, there is power in unity and hope in action.
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