Twenty-five years after the September 11 terrorist attacks, Brandon Wilde will bring residents, team members, and members of the local community together to remember those who lost their lives, honor the first responders who answered the call, and reflect on the lasting impact of that day.
The remembrance event will include a Changing of the Flag Ceremony, participation from a local fire department, and a memorial service. At the center of the program will be a first-person perspective from retired New York City Police Department Detective Wayne Nero, father of Brandon Wilde Director of Environmental Services and Security Chassidy Nero.
A Call to Serve
Wayne served with the NYPD from 1985 to 2005, working as a Detective Third Grade and investigator with the 81st, 73rd, 75th, 94th, and finally the 90th Precinct in Brooklyn. Over his 20-year career, he earned approximately 50 medals and commendations, including medals recognizing his service following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
On the morning of September 11, 2001, Wayne was not on duty. The decision to take the day off to bring then-four-year-old Chassidy to a dental appointment may have kept him from being near the World Trade Center when the towers collapsed. Like thousands of other first responders, however, he was called into service as New York City responded to an event unlike anything they had experienced before.
His first assignment was near the Brooklyn Bridge, helping with crowd control while remaining alert for the possibility of additional terrorist attacks. At the time, no one knew if more attackers were coming or if another location in the city would be targeted. In the days that followed, his responsibilities expanded to search-and-rescue efforts, evidence recovery, and terrorist watch.
First responders worked every single day, focusing on protecting the city and helping New York begin the long process of recovery.
Remembering an Impact That Continues Today
For Wayne, the response was deeply personal. Throughout his career, he had worked alongside members of the New York City Fire Department and EMTs, and he lost associates and colleagues because of the attacks.
September 11 also fundamentally changed the way he and his fellow officers approached their jobs. Protecting New York was no longer solely about anticipating crime. Terrorism had become a threat on a scale that required law enforcement to think and prepare differently.
And the consequences did not end when the immediate emergency was over.
In the years following 9/11, Wayne lost additional colleagues to cancers and illnesses associated with exposure to the smoke, dust, and hazardous conditions surrounding the World Trade Center disaster. Because of his own exposure, he continues to receive annual medical monitoring for potential 9/11-related illnesses and cancers. Fortunately, he has remained cancer-free.
Wayne’s service and strength had a profound effect on the daughter who was with him that morning 25 years ago. “I always saw my dad as a hero,” Chassidy recalls. “As a child, I didn’t understand the weight of what he experienced on 9/11. I only knew him as the calm, steady presence who made me feel safe. As I grew older and understood what he had carried all those years, I admired him even more. His strength and resilience inspired me to be more like him.”
Honoring Service and Sacrifice
Brandon Wilde is home to residents and team members with experiences that span generations, communities, and historic moments. The Life Plan Community in Evans, GA places an emphasis on connection and engagement, and residents come from across the country and from many different professional and personal backgrounds.
The 25th anniversary of September 11 offers an important opportunity to come together around one of those shared moments in American history.
Through the Changing of the Flag Ceremony, memorial service, participation of local firefighters, and Wayne’s story, Brandon Wilde will remember not only what happened on September 11, 2001, but also the people who stepped forward to serve and the sacrifices that continued long after that day.
For Wayne, that is an essential part of remembering 9/11. The experience changed how he understood his responsibility as a police officer, the risks first responders accept in protecting their communities, and how the effects of an event can continue for decades.
Twenty-five years later, those stories remain worth telling — and Brandon Wilde is proud to join the nation in honoring all those who stepped up and served.
