My Marine brother died after 9/11. Don’t waste his sacrifice on passive grief

A few hours after watching the second plane hit the towers on Sept. 11, 2001, I stumbled into my college English class, where my professor asked us to jot down our thoughts and feelings. On a scrap of paper, I described my fear that my brother or father, a Marine, would be in harm’s way in the forthcoming war. My brother Travis Manion, then a midshipman at the Naval Academy, made the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq six years later.It’s now been 25 years since Sept. 11 changed the trajectory of not only my family’s life, but thousands of others. Countless Americans born since then, over 100 million citizens, learn about the attack only from textbooks, documentaries, or presentations. As we tell the next generation what happened on 9/11, keep in mind that remembrance, properly understood, isn’t passive; it’s an act of service.There is real value in gathering to read the names, honor the fallen, and remember the day that changed this country, especially for those who didn’t live through it. But remembrance shouldn’t end there, and a moment of silence isn’t all that we owe the men, women, and children who died on Sept. 11. We owe them a nation that lives up to the courage that countless Americans showed while protecting and defending it. We rightly honor the sacrifice of that day, and the two decades of service that followed, by carrying forward the shared purpose and civic unity that defined the days after 9/11, from the firefighters and emergency personnel who risked their lives to save others to the Americans who answered the call to military service.After Travis’s death, those who knew him faced our own question of what remembrance required of us. We came to believe that we honor the fallen by letting their example challenge how we act, so we established the Travis Manion Foundation to not only preserve his memory, but to carry forward the way he lived. Today, veterans, families of the fallen, and volunteers across the country come together at TMF to mentor young people, lead service projects, and strengthen their communities. These volunteers serve in almost every imaginable capacity. They help cultivate strong moral character and leadership skills for over 50,000 school-age children per year, through our Character Does Matter program. They lead in their communities through TMF Service Platoons that organize projects on an ongoing basis, investing nearly 60,000 hours of volunteer community service annually. They host 9/11 Heroes Runs in over a hundred cities nationwide, bringing together tens of thousands of people.We should honor the sacrifice of our service members by carrying forward the spirit of service they embodied. For veterans, that means continuing to serve in new ways after taking off the uniform. For everyday Americans, that means recognizing that we also have a responsibility to lead, serve, and improve the communities in which we live. We all have a part to play. Serving could mean tutoring a student who’s falling behind or simply becoming a reliable presence at a local civic or service organization near you. Start looking for small needs to meet and listen carefully when people speak. Check on your neighbors. Volunteer for a shift at a food bank or blood drive. If you notice a young person struggling, reach out. Our young people need mentors, and adults need purpose and connection in their life. Say “yes” when people ask for help.THE LEFT IS GASLIGHTING YOU ABOUT ABDUL EL SAYED’S 9/11 POSTSBefore his final deployment to Iraq, my brother Travis left us with a simple message: “If not me, then who….” Let those words guide and challenge you. When we remember our heroes in action, we teach the next generation what 9/11 meant. We teach them how to respond to fear, grief, and evil. We show them the best parts of our nation — and we teach them how to preserve them.So, 25 years later, I ask you: Don’t forget the men and women who’ve given their lives for us. Honor them by remembering that their legacy is not one of loss alone. It is a legacy of living, serving, and answering the call to contribute something greater than themselves.Ryan Manion is a Gold Star sister and the CEO of the Travis Manion Foundation, one of the nation’s leading veteran service organizations that works to empower veterans and families of fallen heroes to inspire future generations to lead with character.