As the 24th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks approaches, hundreds of first responders from North Texas and across the country gathered in downtown Dallas to honor those who lost their lives that day—and those who died in the years that followed due to injuries and illnesses related to the rescue and recovery efforts.

More than 500 firefighters, police officers and paramedics participated in the 14th Annual 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb at the Comerica Bank Tower, ascending 110 flights of stairs in full gear to pay tribute to the fallen.

Ceremony filled with emotion

“I’m sure we all remember the emotion we felt on that day, 9/11,” one speaker said during the ceremony, which featured a color guard, the ringing of a memorial bell and moments of silence.

Among those in attendance was Mikalia Cruz, a 9/11 survivor who was working on the 95th floor of Tower 2 when the first plane hit Tower 1.

“I escaped, but I took one of the last elevators before the second plane hit Tower 2,” Cruz said. “When you see these firefighters and these first responders, it just reminds me of how tragic that day was but how many lives were saved also.”

A son climbs in his father’s gear

One of the climbers, Jack McNamara, is the son of FDNY firefighter John McNamara, who responded to Ground Zero and worked more than 500 hours in the aftermath of the attacks.

“In 2006, he was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer,” Jack said. “He ended up passing in 2009 when I was around two-and-a-half years old.”

Now 18, Jack is a firefighter in Kentucky. He climbed the tower wearing his father’s gear and listening to the same FDNY radio communications his dad heard on 9/11.

“This is my dad’s gear,” he said. “It represents not just my name but my dad’s name that he wore proudly that day at those towers and the following hours after.”

Carrying on a legacy

Jack hopes to one day join the FDNY and carry his father’s badge number.

“My end goal is to be a fireman with the City of New York, FDNY, and follow in my dad’s footsteps,” he said. “His badge number is a huge thing to me. I have it tattooed on my body, and I’d like to wear it on the shield one day.”

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