A new generation, too young to remember the September 11, 2001, attacks, took center stage at Ground Zero on Friday, reading the names of the nearly 3,000 victims and vowing to carry their memory forward.

For many speakers, the ceremony marked a somber acknowledgment of loved ones they never met. "Grandma, I never got to meet you, but you’ve been with me my entire life," said the granddaughter of Barbara Walsh, an administrative assistant at Marsh & McLennan who died in the North Tower. She described a deep, inherited sense of loss and a commitment to ensure the tragedy is not forgotten.

"To my family and everyone born after 9/11 who grew up carrying a loss that they never personally experienced, but still feel the sinking pain in their stomach at the mention of 9/11, I promise you, we promise we will remember," she stated.

The 9/11 Memorial & Museum estimates that a third of Americans alive today were born after the attacks. Manuel Damota, who was an embryo when his father, Manuel Damota Sr., perished at the World Trade Center, spoke of a "lifetime of wondering" about the father he never knew. Damota Sr. was a carpenter who was at the Windows of the World for a meeting on the day of the attacks.

"A lifetime of wondering what you would think, what you would say, what kind of father he would have been and who I would have become if I had the chance to know him. I spent my whole life knowing my father in the memories of others," Damota said.

Efforts to educate younger generations about the attacks have been amplified. City Council members invested $1 million for 9/11 education, and actor Gary Sinise has supported educational initiatives, including free trips to memorial sites and a new documentary.

Dignitaries attending the ceremony included Vice President JD Vance and former Presidents Bill Clinton, George Bush, and Barack Obama. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who was 9 years old during the attacks, attended as head of City Hall. Former mayors Rudy Giuliani, Michael Bloomberg, and Bill de Blasio were also present.

Among those honored was Kevin Patrick Conners, a 55-year-old military veteran and senior vice president at Euro Brokers, Inc. His granddaughter delivered a tribute, saying, "Not a day passes that we don’t think about. We love you. And I know you’re smiling at us."