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Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre to host 9/11 memorial workout

This year, on the 19th anniversary of 911, the fifth annual 911 Memorial Workout will take place on Friday (Sept. 11).
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The 9/11 Memorial Workout will serve as a way to exercise, while showing support for local first responders, many of whom will complete the workout in their turnout gear. (Tyler Klinkhammer/The Cochrane Eagle)

COCHRANE— This Friday (Sept. 11) will mark the 19th anniversary of the 9/11 tragedy that shook the foundations of the United States of America.

The effects of that event were felt here in Canada, by first responders and the general population.

To commemorate the 19th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre, the Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre will be hosting a 9/11-Memorial Workout.

Stephanie Marrello, fitness and wellness coordinator at the facility, said the event is a powerful experience.

“It’s just incredible to work out alongside these first responders, who usually wear their turnout gear, or their military gear, or anything along those lines, and they do the workout in that,” she said.

Cochranite and Calgary-based firefighter Jeremie Huolt started the event, and each year he shows up to participate and lead the workout, Marrello said.

“He really sets the tone for the workout, and he lets us know why we’re here, what 9/11 really is about,” she said. “He has you think about doing each rep for each person. So it’s not about getting it done or being in a race, but it’s a tribute to each person, and to remember that each rep, every squat, represents a life lost. It’s pretty powerful.”

The memorial workout includes 412 exercises, which represent the 412 emergency personnel who died as a result of the terrorist attack. A total of 2,977 individuals died on 9/11.

Marrello has a personal connection to the event. She said a personal training client of hers was one of the first Canadian paramedics on-site, having travelled from Niagara to Ground Zero shortly after the planes collided with the World Trade Centre towers.

“I’m very proud of my friends who are first responders and humbled,” she said.

Given the impact of the attack, and the ripples felt across the world in the wake of 9/11, Marrello said she feels that it is important to take the time to recognize the sacrifices made by emergency personnel.

“It changed everything for a lot of us. Instead of going throughout the day with regularity, to be able to pause and to remember that day and to do it in a way like we do, it’s pretty powerful.”

Although the attack took place on American soil, many of the effects rolled outward and were felt across the world, Marrello said.

“There were a lot of Canadians that did help out during that time in different ways. It wasn’t just an American attack,” she said. “People from all over the world were in New York and in those airplanes.”

Last year, more than 100 individuals showed up to take part in the memorial workout.

This year, with COVID-19 restrictions in place, the Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre has space to safely house 60 individuals, with 30 additional overflow spots available outside.

There will be markers on the floor that direct traffic so that social distancing can be maintained.

There are two timeslots available for workouts, the first at 9:15 a.m., and a second at 12:10 p.m. The workouts will take place in the curling arena, which has been converted into a COVID-friendly workout space.

To register for the event visit slsfamilysportscentre.com/.

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