I am writing this amidst the news coverage of Sept. 11. Clearly the emergency personnel who lost their lives that day should be paid tribute every Sept. 11, lest we forget.

Equally as important as remembering the past is appreciating today. We in the greater Lewiston-Auburn communities are privileged to have the best-trained dispatchers, police, firefighters and rescue paramedics that can be found in all New England.

Add the United Ambulance paramedic services, and the LifeFlight Helicopter service, and we could not ask for more.

It is such a comfort to know that when you dial the phone for an emergency, everyone – from the dispatcher answering the call to the persons responding by rescue, fire apparatus, ambulance, cruiser, or helicopter – are the best-trained personnel we could hope for.

So yes, remember 9/11, and pay tribute to the ones who lost their lives, but also be thankful every day that we have these professionals in our communities.

Angelo Giberti, Lewiston