Our Mission

 The Never Forget 9/11 Memorial and Learning Center in Bedford Township, Michigan, will serve as a serene space for reflection, welcoming individuals of all ages. It will feature educational materials that honor the events of September 11, 2001, ensuring that we never forget their significance in our country's history. This memorial aims to educate future generations about the importance of that day and the profound impact it had on millions of people worldwide. Through its cultural, historical, and educational offerings, the memorial will help guarantee that the legacy of September 11, 2001, endures for current and future generations. 

 The current generation in our schools is a post-9/11 generation, being born after the events of September 11, 2001, and therefore sees it as a historical event. Helping them understand the entire scope of the before, during, and after of the terrorist attacks on the United States that day is instrumental to all current and future generations of Americans. The greater knowledge they gain about the events of that day, the deeper their understanding of our country and what it takes to maintain the free democracy that we all hold dear. 

Education serves to inform today’s generation and the future. We must instill our heroes’ memories and never forget their sufferings and sacrifices. With the proposed project, we can and will “Never Forget”. 

Currently, Bedford Township, Michigan, does not have a memorial to recognize September 11, 2001. While the library does own materials on the events of that day and its aftermath, they are spread throughout their collection. The proposed Never Forget 9/11 Memorial and Learning Center will include both an outdoor memorial site and an indoor educational component. The outdoor site will be located on Bedford Township property near the southwest corner of the Township’s branch library. The indoor component will be located within the library in a designated area.  

The outdoor memorial will commemorate the lives lost by terrorist attacks on US soil and will be free and open to the public seven days a week. It will include the names of all 2,977 people who were killed on September 11, 2001 in New York City, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, PA from the hijacking of four planes; American Airlines Flight 175 and Flight 11 crashed into World Trade Center North and South Towers in New York City, American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington, VA, and American Airlines Flight 93 which was forced down by the brave passengers in a field in Shanksville, PA.

The indoor component of the project will feature a learning center established at the Bedford Branch Library. This will include an interactive kiosk with age-appropriate materials available through the 9/11 National Memorial and Museum, as well as other resources. Audio recordings, news broadcasts, articles, and video coverage will all be included. Books for all ages on the topics surrounding September 11, 2001, will be available for checkout. Near the anniversary of the terrorist attacks each year, a larger display will be set up to make materials as accessible as possible to the largest number of people.

The most significant advantage of having this memorial on the grounds of the Bedford Branch library is that the library is directly adjacent to both the junior high and High School and is less than a mile from one of the elementary schools for Bedford Public Schools. This allows for easy access to classes, with the ability to walk safely from the Jr. High and High School.

For more than 7 years, the founding members of the Never Forget 9/11 Memorial Project have been working with our local schools to help educate students about the events of September 11, 2001. Aside from any reading they may do about the events of that day, the students don’t have a personal connection. Myrta Gschaar, one of the founding members, lost her husband, who worked in the World Trade Center on 9/11. Her personal accounting of the day provides an impactful memory for generations who don’t have their own personal memories of the day. As a 9/11 family member, Myrta has unique access to official documentation of the events of that day that can be incorporated into the learning center in the library, which may not otherwise be available.