CALAIS – The president of Washington County Technical College said Wednesday he simply had no new words.

On a day when thousands of memorials were offered in thousands of places in honor of last year’s terrorist attacks, William Flahive turned to words from half a century ago to express his thoughts: “It is not what we endure, but how we endure it,” he said, quoting President Harry S. Truman.

Instead of more words, people at Washington County Technical College displayed more than 3,000 tiny flags on the lawn in front of the campus, across from a gray St. Croix River.

For more than an hour, students at the technical college and nearby Calais High School paused to reflect on last year’s events. The ceremony was titled “A Time of Remembrance and Hope.”

Two students rang a small bell to honor the passengers and crews of the four planes that crashed, two into the World Trade Center, a third into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and the fourth into a field in Pennsylvania.

After the bell ringing, the Calais High School band played the national anthem, then more than 600 participants recited the pledge of allegiance.

Calais High School student Amanda Brown said the world did not understand what it is to be an American. She said the United States is an amalgamation of ethnic cultures and religions, people who care about each other and the world.

The Rev. Diana Graham, pastor of the First Congregational Church in Calais, noted the many acts of heroism and bravery that dotted last year’s tragedy. She spoke about the police officers and firefighters who were ordinary people who performed extraordinary deeds – people who did the best that they could do, she said.

No American was untouched by what happened, the pastor said. People in Washington County rallied and sent money, cards, workers and prayers. “It was an extraordinarily horrific time, but under the circumstances we did the best that we can do,” she said.

Then, Graham offered a litany of hope. “In the midst of hatred and death, we celebrate the promise of love and life,” she said.

Standing at the front of the gymnasium, bagpiper James Moffitt then offered “Amazing Grace.”