On Sept. 11, many Elizabethtown College students may have noticed the multitude of flags placed around the central quad as part of the 9/11 memorial. However, there was more to this amazing memorial than many people may have seen.

The flags and memorial service were organized by the Etown College Republicans on campus, with its members helping with both the set up and clean-up of the tribute.

“We thought it was a great first campus-wide event for us since being re-established [in spring of 2022] as a club,” President of College Republicans Tim Mackall said.

The astonishing idea for the placing of the flags was proposed to the club by faculty advisor Susan Friguglietti, who brought the idea from her previous place of employment.

The flags themselves held specific importance that many onlookers might not have seen at first glance.

“We placed 2,977 flags throughout the academic quad, one for each person who lost their life that day,” Mackall said. “We wanted the tribute to be impactful and seeing almost 3,000 flags in one place really helps people understand the significance of the tragedy that took place on 9/11.”

This memorial was observed by a large number of students who regularly pass through the academic quad, and the College Republicans were excited by the positive response from the student body and the staff.

Mackall fondly recalls a specific email he received from a staff member who was incredibly thankful for the tribute.

Apart from the flag memorial, a service was held in the BSC which was attended by numerous students.

Despite all this favorable feedback received from the community, “We did not do this for the recognition, but it lets us know that we made a positive impact on our campus community,” Mackall noted.

“The meaning behind the flags was very impactful to me as a student. Seeing the sheer number of flags representing the dead was important and eye-opening,” one anonymous student who witnessed the flags in the quad said.

This tribute to the tragic events is planned to become an annual event for the College Republicans on the Etown campus and encourages all students, no matter what political affiliation, to become involved with tribute in the coming years.

“I want to thank all the C[ollege] R[epublicans] volunteers who helped us organize the tribute and put out the flags. Also, Nichole Gonzalez, Dr. Kristi Kneas and Rev. Amy Shorner-Johnson for their much-appreciated support,” Mackall noted. “And thank you to our classmates and staff for making this such a meaningful memorial for such an important day of remembrance.”