At 8:46 a.m., the city, police department and fire district of Marysville conducted a brief 9/11 remembrance ceremony at the police and firefighters’ memorial in front of the Marysville Library.
In addition to an invocation by Greg Kanehen, pastor of the Marysville Free Methodist Church, the event included the Honor Guard presenting the colors, playing “Taps” and ringing the bell to mark the occasion, to honor the first responders who perished in the World Trade Center attacks, as well as Marysville Fire Lt. Jeff Thornton, who lost his life to cancer on that day.
Marysville Mayor Dennis Kendall and City Council members John Nehring, Jeff Vaughan and Carmen Rasmussen, as well as police and fire personnel, attended the ceremony.
At 9 a.m., the Marysville Community Food Bank invited pastors from several area churches to stop by and commemorate 9/11 by taking part in a “day of service” Sept. 11.
“We’re supported by 18 local churches whose monthly donations help us operate our building,” Marysville Community Food Bank Director Joyce Zeigen said Sept. 11. “For today, I thought it might be nice to give them an opportunity to offer more hands-on services, so that they can see how their funds are serving the community. 9/11 was such a sad day in our history, but that’s what makes it such a good day for these pastors to bolster morale. With faith, we can rebuild after tragedies and create something better.”
A few pastors were forced to decline the event due to other obligations, but Tom Albright, of Marysville United Methodist Church, and Craig Laughlin, of the Marysville Church of the Nazarene, were on hand to don aprons, push shopping carts and help customers pick out items.
“If anything can unite Christians, it’s feeding the hungry,” Albright said. “We may have different approaches to theology and come from different ethnic backgrounds, but we were all called to the ministry by Jesus to help feed the hungry.”
Albright laughed as he admitted that he had “no idea” what sort of work the food bank would be putting him toward, but he wore blue jeans “expecting hard work.”
“The food bank is one of the best volunteer opportunities for community members to demonstrate their concern for their fellow human beings,” Albright said. “I’ve been a pastor for a long time, and this is by far one of the nicest, most efficient food banks I’ve ever seen.”
Laughlin echoed Albright’s assessment of the Marysville Community Food Bank, comparing it favorably to other food banks that he’s worked in, some as far away as Kansas City. Laughlin is relatively new to the Marysville community, so he jumped at the chance to get involved with some on-the-job volunteer training at the local food bank.
“It’s important to care for those in difficult financial circumstances,” Laughlin said. “This allows our churches to engage in a collective expression of our love for the community in tangible and practical ways, with deeds as well as words. This is an extremely professional and effective food bank, and I’d encourage anyone to get involved with them. It’s a very satisfying and rewarding experience.”
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