County residents attended scores of 9/11 memorials in parks, on main streets and in places of worship around the region yesterday, with the centerpiece observance held in Balboa Park.
Thousands of San Diegans, many waving flags and dressed in combinations of red, white and blue, overflowed the Organ Pavilion for the Patriot Day remembrance.
In his keynote speech, Mayor Dick Murphy recalled Pearl Harbor, and said, "We overcame that day of infamy and a stronger America emerged. We have been, we are and we will be a resilient nation."
Hundreds of uniformed police officers and firefighters lined the colonnade on either side of the pavilion. As they entered, they received standing ovations, as did Police Chief David Bejarano, Fire Chief Jeff Bowman and Rear Adm. Jose Luis Betancourt, the Navy's regional commander, as they took turns at the podium.
"All of us in public safety have been deeply moved by the appreciation shown by the people of this city and this country," Bejarano said. "It is the everyday Americans . . . that will see us through this fight."
At Tijuana's City Hall, American patriotic music echoed in the interior patio, and miniature American flags were displayed.
In Oceanside, a parade along The Strand of emergency vehicles with lights flashing began the day's memorials, followed by a quiet flag-raising at the city's beachfront amphitheater.
In Alpine, more than 300 grade-school students chanted "U-S-A" as 25 racing pigeons took flight in an observance at the community center. The "thoroughbreds of the sky" circled the baseball field and flew off into the sun. They symbolized good will, peace, loyalty and love, said Tom Blood of the Coronado Racing Pigeon Club.
