WASHINGTON, D.C. — Members of the military, civilian employees, and passengers flying from Virginia to Los Angeles were among the 184 victims who lost their lives at the Pentagon 25 years ago.
The attack on the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, rattled the heartbeat of our nation and its security.
It was at 8:20 a.m. on this day, 25 years ago, when American Airlines Flight 77 departed Washington-Dulles International Airport en route to Los Angeles. Over an hour later, at 9:37, Flight 77 crashed into the west side of the Pentagon. 184 lives were lost as a result.
“My mother was in the Pentagon that day and was a survivor from that day,” said Joe Kornhoff, the executive director of the Pentagon Memorial Fund, a nonprofit organization established in 2003 by the family members of the 9/11 attack victims.
The Pentagon Memorial Fund works to raise funds to build, preserve and maintain the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial.
For Kornhoff, his work is personal. He remembers the somber day vividly.
“The thing I remember most, when I talk to people, is the sound of the garage opening that night and knowing that my mother and father were coming home that night,” said Kornhoff.
On Saturday, Kornhoff and the Pentagon Memorial Fund will host a formal groundbreaking ceremony for the new National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial Visitor Education Center.
“The Visitor Education Center is going to include 10 separate exhibits that highlight not only the victims and their families and their sacrifice, but also the heroism of that day, of our military and civilian alike, who were running into the building to save their colleagues,” said Kornhoff.
In addition to honoring the victims and highlighting the courage of first responders, the facility will be designed to educate and provide historical context, with the goal of ensuring the impact of this day transcends generations to come.
“For nearly a third of Americans, they don’t have that personalized connection. That’s what we’re trying to provide with the Visitor Education Center to the nearly 1 million visitors that come to our memorial every year,” said Kornhoff.
The new Pentagon Visitor Education Center is expected to be completed by the end of 2029. Officials say the project would not be possible without bipartisan support from the federal government, the Commonwealth of Virginia and support from the private sector.
