Crowds turn out for 9/11 traveling museum in Huntingdon

HUNTINGDON, Tenn. — This year will mark 15 years since terrorists attacked the World Trade Center. A traveling 9/11 exhibit opened to visitors Tuesday in West Tennessee for a one-day-only showing.

“We forget things and we repeat our mistakes, so it’s so important that we get to teach people and re-educate them about what happened on 9/11,” said Jack Oehm, retired FDNY battalion chief and presented with the 9/11 Never Forget Mobile Exhibit.

The traveling exhibit pays homage to the men and women who lost their lives on September 11, 2001.

“It’s a lot more than I expected,” student Sydney Roney said. “They had materials that were there from the site, they had videos — it was awesome. And to even hear stories of people that were there — you can’t get this in a book.”

Hundreds waited in line for the tour that stopped in Huntingdon for just one day.

“Our children who might not have been born at that time know that this event in our history took place, and it’s important we keep telling that story,” said Lori Neal Nolan, executive director Dixie Performing Arts Center.

Retired firemen who where at Ground Zero on the day of the attacks volunteer as tour guides sharing their first-hand experiences.

Although many of the kids who visited the exhibit weren’t born when 9/11 happened, the firemen say they hope students understand the sacrifice that took place.

“I want them to realize the sacrifices of people that went before them, and seeing what the fire and police officers did on 9/11, that’s a giving nature,” Oehm said.

Organizers say more than a thousand students went through the exhibit Tuesday.

The exhibit will pack up Tuesday evening and head to its next stop in northern Iowa.