Photo by Deb Gau Third and fourth grade students from Holy Redeemer School receive American flags before Monday’s 9/11 memorial ceremony in Memorial Park.

MARSHALL — It happened on a beautiful fall morning like Monday, speakers said. But the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, changed life in the U.S.

“It was one of the worst days our country has faced,” said Lt. Col. Kelly Wasberg.

Wasberg said it was a sacred act to pause and remember the lives lost that day, and the response of many Americans who rushed to help.

“I ask you to remember what took place that day — the fear as well as the courage,” Wasberg told people gathered in Memorial Park on Monday morning.

Marshall officials and community members met at the 9/11 Memorial downtown for a short ceremony.

“This is a solemn event … but it’s also a celebration of the American spirit, and their resiliency,” said Marshall Mayor Bob Byrnes.

During the ceremony, Marshall Public Safety Director Jim Marshall and Fire Chief Quentin Brunsvold laid a wreath on the section of beam from the World Trade Center at the center of the memorial. Wasberg, a Marshall community member and Army National Guard chaplain, spoke to an audience that included community members from local emergency responders, to third and fourth grade students from Holy Redeemer School.

Wasberg spoke a little about his mission as a chaplain. In his work, there were three key tasks he needed to do: nurture the living, care for the wounded, and honor the fallen. The task of honoring the fallen was something the community was taking time to do on Monday.

“I am grateful to pause with you today,” he said. But as the community reflected on 9/11, Wasberg said there was also something else they could do.

“I’m asking you to add this to your daily practice,” he said. “Simply practice gratitude. Find something or someone to be thankful for.”

Wasberg said there were many ways to practice gratitude in life, whether that meant gratitude for one’s country, or for the people in one’s life. They could be thankful for many things in life, big and small.

“You can have gratitude for a loved one, a friend, a pet or a sandwich,” he said.

In closing, Wasberg asked the audience to let gratitude shape the way they went about their lives.

Byrnes invited the public to spend some quiet time at Memorial Park after Monday’s program. The park, which was dedicated in 2011, is a place with many symbols of the lives lost on 9/11.