DUANE SHERRILLEditor

Spectators and participants in the Tunnel to Towers 5K Run and Walk filled downtown Lynchburg Saturday as runners honored first responders who bravely ran into the Twin Towers on Sept. 11, 2001.

The Tunnel to Towers Foundation (T2T) is a charitable organization that honors the sacrifice of Stephen Siller, a New York City firefighter who died on September 11, 2001. The foundation’s name comes from Siller, who ran through the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel to the Twin Towers to help emergency services after hearing a plane had hit the North Tower. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation builds mortgage-free smart homes for our most catastrophically injured veterans and first responders. Each home is designed to address the unique needs of each individual.

Through T2T’s Veterans Villages and National Case Management Network, the Tunnel to Towers Foundation is responsible for providing housing assistance and access to supportive services to over 3,300 veterans in 2023.

Danny Beyar of the New York Fire Department started the event off with the opening ceremony before scores of participants, many carrying the Red, White and Blue and clad in turnout gear, took to the streets for the event.