September has been a big month at the Salina Fire Department. It began on September 11th with a “Tribute to Heroes Memorial Service” in the morning, followed by an “Evening to Always Remember” at Great Life Golf & Fitness. Sunday the organization hosted its 3rd “Steps of Hope”  9/11 Memorial Stair Climb and 5K Family Walk to begin the day and ended it “Live From the Lot”.

The stair climb event at the Graves Family Sports Complex at Kansas Wesleyan University was two-fold, a memorial stair climb and a 5K walk /run. Those participating in the stair climb climbed the equivalent of 110 flights of stairs, which is what the the firefighters on September 11th, 2001 had to climb. Many of the participants were firefighters wearing their full gear, which weighs about 100 pounds. Salina Police Officers also participated, along with citizens. They climbed up and down the stadium stairs, taking seven laps around the facility to complete the task.

Sunday evening many unwound at the “Live From the Lot” concert event at Long McArthur. The show which featured a trio of country stars including Josh Ross, Tyler Braden, and Jay Allen, began with a video honoring those who were impacted by the vents of September 11th, 2001.