GREENVILLE, Pa.—Members of the Greenville community joined the brothers of Kappa Sigma fraternity and Thiel College students, faculty and staff for the fifth annual 9/11 stair climb at Alumni Stadium.
Police officers from the Greenville Police Department and students from the Keystone Charter School also participated in the stair walk.
“We promote our donations to veterans, but the 9/11 walk is when we acknowledge how these men are true heroes. Seeing these challenges that brave soldiers and firefighters (and all first responders) dealt with that somber day, and the weeks of rebuilding the hope and structure of New York will never be matched, still we honor them in the best way possible by spreading awareness of what a fraction of what they went through looks like,” Kappa Sigma president Matt Nale ’25 said. “This will be the first year doing this without an active brother being born before 9/11, so it is important now more than ever to do our part in never forgetting.”
The first event was held at Graul Amphitheater in Riverside Park in 2020. In 2023 the event was moved to Alumni Stadium. Participants walked the bleachers from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday symbolizing the 110 flights of stairs first responders climbed in the Twin Towers.
Event organizers welcomed participants and held a moment of silence at the beginning of the event. As part of the opening ceremony veterans’ liaison Mike Mason, who spent 21 years in the U.S. Army and was deployed to more than 40 countries and 35 states—including four combat tours in Afghanistan, described to attendees his experience as a member of the Army working in the White House on Sept. 11, 2001.
Kappa Sigma created the Military Heroes Campaign in 2007. The campaign serves as their philanthropy. The campaign honors and aids thousands of military veterans and their families in communities throughout the U.S. and Canada. Since its inception, the campaign has donated over $1 million to non-profit organizations that advocate on behalf of servicemen and women and those wounded in combat.
About Thiel College
Thiel College is an independent college founded in the Lutheran tradition. Located in Greenville, Pa., the College offers 60 majors and minors, 24 varsity sports, and an 11:1 student-faculty ratio. The College is also home to a new Master of Science in speech-language pathology and 2Master of Business Administration. Both master’s degree programs offer innovative and accelerated five-year paths which allow students to earn a bachelor’s and master’s degree in five years. The speech-language pathology program also has an accelerated 15-month graduate-level program. The M.B.A. program also has a 12-month post-graduate program.A dedicated faculty paired with dynamic research and internship opportunities produce numerous graduate school and job placements. Coeducational from its beginnings, the College remains committed to combining tradition with innovation as it celebrates 150 years.