Torero Tidbits: Remembering 9/11; Fowler Business Concept Challenge; Torero Athletics Rewind

Nineteen Years Later: Remembering 9/11

The events of September 11, 2001 remain etched in the minds of those who watched coverage of airplanes that crashed into the World Trade Center buildings in New York, one that crashed a section of the Pentagon and still another that landed in Stonycreek Township, Pennsylvania after hijackers were thwarted by passengers from their expected destination of Washington D.C. There were 2,996 people who died that Tuesday morning as a result of the attacks.

On Friday, the 19th anniversary of this terrorist attack on the United States, will be remembered across the nation. At the University of San Diego there is a permanent 9/11 memorial in front of the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice in the Garden of the Sky. It is likely to attract visitors during the day. The memorial lists the names of all men, women and children who lost their lives.

The inscription on a metal plate at the entrance to the 9/11 Memorial says:

This memorial is dedicated to those who perished on 9/11/2001. In this place of communal contemplation, we see in our own reflection the names of the many individuals known to have been lost, and mourn all victims of terror from across the globe. The international scope of this tragedy is etched in the alphabetical arrangement of hometowns and cities of those lost, displayed with no mention country or state; these names of places underscore how deeply and intricately we are all connected. Although time passes and memories fade, the lives of all victims of terror will live on in each of us and in our determination to make this world a more tolerant, peaceful and inclusive place.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and imposed restrictions of big gatherings in one place, the usual in-person ceremony will not happen. The ceremony features members of the San Diego NROTC Color Guard surrounding the memorial standing at attention while the playing of “Taps,” is done at the exact time of when the four planes crashed. Typically, interfaith prayers are said at the conclusion of the ceremony.

Instead of the usual ceremony, USD’s University Ministry encourages people to tune in to Friday’s virtual 12:15 p.m. Daily Mass. Acknowledgement of the 9/11 victims and prayers for their lives will take place during Mass.

Key September Dates for Fowler Business Concept Challenge Entrants 

Have an entrepreneurial business idea you’d like to submit for entry into a USD competition that could earn you — undergraduate and graduate students — a piece of a scholarship prize pool of $45,000 this fall?

If so, that means you’ll want to enter the Fowler Business Concept Challenge, run by the USD School of Business’ Entrepreneurship and Innovation Catalyzer and generously supported by Ron and Alexis Fowler, later this month.

The Catalyzer team will host a submission training session from 12:15 to 1:45 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 17 virtually for those who want to make a strong submission for this year’s challenge. The team will guide you through the submission requirements, answer questions about competition requirements, deadline and more. Also, student entrants will be matched with faculty and industry mentors. Students attending this event are eligible for one Passport/Compass/Connect point. To learn more and to register, please click here.

That session will be important because the deadline to submit your FBCC idea is Friday, Sept. 25 at 5 p.m.

For more information or to ask questions, please email: entrepreneurship@sandiego.edu

Re-live Great Torero Athletics Games

Miss cheering for your favorite Torero teams and miss the thrill of seeing some of their classic victories on the field and on the court? Well, the USD Athletics Department agrees with you, 100 percent. They, too, are missing the thrills and excitement of USD sports action during this COVID-19 pandemic that forced games to be cancelled for Fall 2020.

So, what does that mean? Well, for now, it means that we’re turning to social media channels to bring us back to great sports moments such as a 2018 Pioneer Football League game between the host Toreros and Davidson (N.C.) Wildcats in what was a crazy, high-scoring game. A USD win would give them the PFL championship.

It’s the Torero Rewind Game of the Week. View the game on YouTube now or catch it on the USD Athletics ‘ Toreros All-Access page.

The Torero Rewind Game of the Week for next week is scheduled to be shown on Thursday, Sept. 17 from 12-1 p.m. on the USD Athletics Facebook page. The featured match is the always important West Coast Conference match-up, this time in 2019, as the USD women’s volleyball team hosts BYU in what was a battle for first place in the conference standings between two Top 25-ranked teams.

— Compiled by Ryan T. Blystone