Prior to Saturday night’s game between the St. Lucie Mets and Lakeland Flying Tigers at Clover Park in Port St. Lucie, the teams participated in a touching pregame ceremony that remembered and paid tribute to September 11, 2001.
As you walked up to the gates of Clover Park, you emerged on a fire truck with an American flag in front of a beautiful September 11th memorial statue outside of the stadium.
Fans took a moment to pay tribute to those who lost their lives at the memorial before entering into the patriotic-themed stadium. With red, white, and blue drapes hanging throughout, there was already a sense of American pride walking in. You could tell Saturday night was going to be different. It was going to be a night of coming together as a community.
The ceremonies began with active and retired first responders and military members taking the field for the ceremonies to be honored.
The St. Lucie County Fire Department then presented an $8,000 check to the St. Lucie County Hundred Club with money that was raised from 9/11 memorial shirts. The Hundred Club provides direct financial help for spouses and dependents of law enforcement officers and firefighters who have lost their lives or become disabled.
Following the St. Lucie County Hundred Club presentation, Tommy Bose, the head groundkeeper for the St. Lucie Mets, was presented a plaque for his assistance with first responders in 2001.
Once these presentations were complete, the players, coaches, staffs of each team and umpires took the field and lined the sidelines.
Each player, coach, staff, and umpire held the picture of a first responder who passed away on September 11, 2001 in the attacks and played for them on Saturday night. As the players held the pictures of these heroes, a moment of silence was held, followed by the reading of every name of every first responder and flight attendant who passed away in the attacks.
The names read included late Fort Pierce, Fla., resident CeeCee Ross Lyles, a flight attendant on United Flight 93 when the plane went down in a grass field in Shanksville, Pa. Lyles was honored in multiple ceremonies on Saturday, including one in Fort Pierce as well. It was a touching moment, and you could sense the somberness of the crowd as many throughout the stadium recalled the day that the attacks of 9/11 occurred.
Everyone in attendance then stood to their feet and removed their caps as “America the Beautiful” and “The Star Spangled Banner” were both sang by members of the Fort Pierce Police Department, followed by a 9/11 tribute video on the video board.
Lou Mozilla, a retired FDNY firefighter then threw out the game’s ceremonial first pitch, representing FDNY firefighters, retired and active.
All throughout the game, the players’ headshots were in front of a 9-11 memorial background on the stadium’s video board.
During the game, former Florida Highway Patrol Officer Joseph Bullock, who was killed in the line of duty on February 5, 2020 was honored and “God Bless America” was sung during the seventh-inning stretch.
The game’s ceremonies and tribute events concluded with a patriotic-themed fireworks display that lit up the night sky in Port St. Lucie.
It was a touching night at Clover Park for both the teams and the fans as the city came together to honor those who lost their lives 20 years ago.
The game paid tribute to those who lost their lives, their families, and those who were affected by the attacks on 9-11. While there were somber moments, there were moments of pride as everyone came together as a community to remember a day that forever changed our nation.
