Know
Saturday and Sunday: 9-11 commemorations at RISE monument
As the 22nd anniversary of the cataclysmic events of 9-11 approaches, American cities far and wide are gearing up for commemorative community events.
St. Petersburg has the RISE St. Pete monument, at 515 22nd Street S., adjacent to the Warehouse Arts District’s ArtsXchange campus. Dedicated in December 2021, the centerpiece is a battered, nine-foot section of construction-grade steel beam, taken from the ashes of the World Trade Center and donated to the so-called Horse Soldiers, the first Special Operations force to engage in Afghanistan in the aftermath of 9/11.
Several members of that elite unite relocated to St. Pete with their company, American Freedom Distillery. Today, they also own and operate the Urban Stillhouse restaurant.
The Horse Soldiers, along with sculptor Mark Aeling (who designed the memorial setting) and the Warehouse Arts District Association have planned commemorative events Saturday and Sunday.
The main event is Sunday’s 10 a.m. memorial ceremony at the monument itself, including speeches by community leaders and Armed Forces personnel, color guard, the National Anthem and an invocation. The ceremony will last approximately one hour.
Saturday
6-8 p.m.: Dinner & Tasting at Urban Stillhouse. A diverse special menu; mingle and share stories with the Horse Soldier team, veterans, Special Ops, former Green Berets and Navy Seals. Ticketholders are automatically entered into a raffle for a free Horse Soldier whiskey tasting.
The $125 ticket (available here) includes the above, plus a screening of the 2018 film 12 Strong, at the WADA outdoor theater. Starring Chris Hemsworth and Michael Shannon, the movie is a dramatized account of the Horse Soldiers story.
Immediately following the screening: A Q&A with Horse Soldier Steve Kofron and LtCol USAF (Ret) Jerry Lavely.
Sunday
10-11 a.m.: Ceremony at the Rise St. Pete monument (see above).
11 a.m.-noon: A panel discussion (“Flip the Script”) about 9-11 and the American response; panelists include Arturo Jimenez-Bacardi (USF International Relations and Political Science), John Welch (Adjunct Professor SPC), Jerry Lavely (Horse Soldier Team Member/LtCol USAF (Ret).), John Beggins (NYPD Ret.), Imam Abdullah Jaber (Executive Director CAIR-Florida).
Sunday events are free.
