16th Annual Waves of Flags 2023 Display at Pepperdine University

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For the 16th consecutive year, Pepperdine University will commemorate the lives lost in the terror attacks on September 11, 2001, with the Waves of Flags display at Alumni Park on the Malibu campus.

Waves of Flags commemorates the 2,977 lives lost in the September 11 terror attacks and features a vast display of American flags for each American life lost as well as international flags representing the home countries of those from abroad. Made possible through the support of donors and volunteers, the installation will be on display at the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Malibu Canyon Road from Saturday, September 2 to September 21, 2023.

In addition to the Waves of Flags installation, Pepperdine is the permanent home of the Thomas E. Burnett, Jr., Heroes Garden, a place to honor all those who live heroic lives, including Pepperdine alumnus Thomas E. Burnett, Jr. (MBA ’95), a passenger on United Flight 93, whose life was cut short in the September 11 attacks. The garden's plaque reads: “Dedicated to freedom's heroes of September 11, 2001, and the passengers of United Airlines Flight 93, among them Pepperdine alumnus Thomas E. Burnett, Jr., who sacrificed their lives to overcome terrorists’ intent on destroying American lives and landmarks in our nation's capital. We shall never forget.” Heroes Garden is currently closed to the public, along with the rest of the Pepperdine campus.

On Monday, September 12th, Pepperdine will host Honoring the Heroes of 9/11, a commemoration ceremony led by University chancellor Sara Jackson (’74) with special remarks by president Jim Gash (JD ’93) and Pepperdine alumni Ryan Sawtelle (’09) and Chris Garcia (’11), who brought the Waves of Flags idea to life in 2008. The ceremony will be held at 11 AM at Alumni Park.

www.pepperdine.edu/newsroom/articles/pepperdine-pays-tribute-to-lives-lost-on-9-11-with-annual-waves-of-flags-display.htm

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Ride to the Flags 2022 9/11 Tribute Filmed at Mugu Rock in Point Mugu

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Ride to the Flags began in 2008, accompanying the Wave of Flags 9/11 Memorial at Pepperdine University. Although not officially associated with the memorial - the ride does end at the memorial for a short service. Ride to the Flags is an all volunteer, charity ride with 100% of the riders' donations going to an injured warrior. The ride has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for select warriors in need of rehab equipment and life-enhancing services. Learn more at www.whiteheart.org/ridetotheflags.

This year's event raised funds for Navy EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) tech Jordan Stevenson, who sustained sever injuries on his first deployment to Afghanistan with the 3rd/75th rangers. Learn more about Jordan's story at youtu.be/T7DWSo3_1Es

This footage was taken from just southeast of Mugu Rock in Point Mugu State Park, just a couple miles away from the start of the event at Naval Base Ventura County.

Where Were You on 9/11? I Certainly Remember.

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Ten years ago we were horrified by the 9/11 terrorist attacks. We watched the scenes over and over.  It was surreal. We were scared and concerned but felt helpless as we could do nothing about it from our TV screens. Most of us will never forget where we were and what we were doing that day. I’ll centainly never forget.

Of all places, I happened to be in Paris on an overseas MBA project with a classmate. We were in a taxi driving from our hotel to Orly Airport, where we were to fly to Nice. The attacks had already occurred yet Josh* and I had no idea, nor could we have ever imagined the extent of what had taken place.

* I just spoke with Josh today and coincidentally he wrote about our experience at www.unboxedthoughts.com/2011/09/09/ten-years-later/ (My account here was originally written 4 years ago but I've updated it for the 10th Anniversary remembrance of the attacks.)

Our taxi driver was Chinese and of course spoke French, but not English. The extent of our combined French vocabulary was oui, merci, bonjour and Hors D'oeuvres.

Halfway into the ride the driver turned up the radio volume very loud. Our first clue that something was wrong was repeatedly hearing the word “American” on the news. Our driver tried to communicate what he was hearing and our interpretation of his animated hand motions was that an airplane had crashed. We had absolutely no idea what really had just taken place in New York.

At Orly Airport, things went as planned. We checked in and were on the flight to Nice. The only thing we found slightly disturbing was the police patrolling the airport with large, machine gun like weapons. But we didn’t think too much of it at the time as we were both looking forward to visiting the South of France for the first time.  The flight moved forward without a hitch.

We landed in Nice and at the baggage claim area our names we

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10th Annual Waves of Flags Display at Pepperdine University Will Be Open September 9 to 25, 2017

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From September 9 through September 25, Pepperdine’s Alumni Park at the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Malibu Canyon Road will have on display the 10th Annual Waves of Flags installation to commemorate the lives lost in the terror attacks of September 11, 2001.

Each year, Waves of Flags features 2,977 full-size flags—2,887 American flags for each American life lost and 90 international flags representing the home countries of individuals from abroad who died in the 9/11 attacks.

The installation became a Pepperdine tradition in 2008 when the school’s College Republicans group organized to bring the tribute to the campus.

In addition to the Waves of Flags installation, Pepperdine is the permanent home of the Thomas E. Burnett, Jr., Heroes Garden, a public space for visitors to reflect and honor all those who live heroic lives, including namesake and Pepperdine alumnus Thomas Burnett (MBA ’95), a passenger on United Flight 93 who lost his life in the 9/11 attacks.

9th Annual Waves of Flags Display at Pepperdine University to Honor 9/11 Victims Will Be Open September 10 to 26

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On Saturday, September 10, Pepperdine University’s Alumni Park will become home to the University’s ninth annual Waves of Flags installation. The display will commemorate the lives lost in the terror attacks of September 11, 2001.

Waves of Flags will feature a display of a total of 2,977 full-size flags—2,887 American flags for each American life lost and 90 various international flags representing the home countries of those from abroad who died in the 9/11 attacks.

On September 10th at 1 PM, a group of over 150 volunteers, including Pepperdine faculty, staff, students and Malibu community members, will join together to install and raise the flags.

The installation became a Pepperdine tradition in 2008 when the College Republicans, inspired by a similar display, wanted to bring the tribute to the University. Now in its ninth year, Waves of Flags has become a significant service project for the Pepperdine community.

In addition to the Waves of Flags installation, the University is the permanent home of Heroes Garden, a public space for visitors to reflect and honor all those who live heroic lives, including Pepperdine alumnus Thomas E. Burnett, Jr. (MBA ’95), a passenger on United Flight 93 whose life was cut short in the 9/11 attacks.

The garden's plaque reads: “Dedicated to freedom's heroes of September 11, 2001, and the passengers of United Airlines Flight 93, among them Pepperdine alumnus Thomas E. Burnett, Jr., who sacrificed their lives to overcome terrorists’ intent on destroying American lives and landmarks in our nation's capital. We shall never forget.”

Waves of Flags will be open to the public for viewing and visitation at the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Malibu Canyon Road from September 10 to September 26. 

2015 Pepperdine University Waves of Flags Display in Honor of 9/11 Victims

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Once again, Pepperdine University students and volunteers will be staging a display of nearly 2,977 flags in honor of each of the victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The display will be at Alumni Park, at the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Malibu Canyon Road. Each victim is memorialized with a flag reflecting their nationality. Waves of Flags will be open to the public for viewing and visitation through September 24th.

Drone Footage of Pepperdine University 9/11 Waves of Flags Display

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Just when I thought I'd finally seen enough of the 2014 Pepperdine University 9/11 Waves of Flags display in rememberance of the 2,977 victims of the terrorist attacks in 2011, I saw this amazing video.  Kevin Foley, a "Droneographer," shot this footage that provides a new perspective on this spectacular annual display. Visit www.greenmediadrones.com for more information about Foley's services.