On some anniversaries we celebrate. On others we reflect.

The 16th anniversary of the attack on America and New York’s World Trade Center is one of the times for reflection. There is truly nothing to celebrate in the extraordinary tragedy of 9/11.

As much as I would like to forget some of them, the images from that day will never be out of my mind, nor will the victims and their families.

But there is one memory I want to hold on to, one that I want to cherish as the deepest and most lasting of Sept. 11, 2001. It is the memory of the heroism and selflessness demonstrated by law enforcement officers, fire fighters and emergency medical technicians who went about their business that day without concern for their own safety and without consideration for the magnitude of what they were confronting.

Most of us have always had an appreciation for first responders whether we called them that or not.

I am not sure where the tradition of delivering a meal to first responders on the anniversary of 9/11 started in our company, but I’m glad it did. It started out of someone’s caring and appreciative heart and spread from employee to employee and location to location until stores all over Kentucky and Tennessee were involved.

No one ever imagined that taking a meal to first responders as a way of showing our appreciation would turn out to mean so much to the people in our company. As more and more people and locations became involved, a simple gesture became an annual salute to first responders.

The way we show our appreciation differs from community to community and location to location, but everyone involved knows they have the support and encouragement of our company.

We value the opportunity to show their appreciation to First Responders. One of our goals is to encourage others in the community to be involved as well.

Using the 9/11 anniversary as an opportunity to refresh and rekindle our feelings for first responders is a good thing. It’s a simple but meaningful way to say, “Thank you, first responders. We salute you.”

Garry McNabb,

chief executive officer

Cash Express LLC