BENTON, Ky. — On Wednesday, 2,977 flags decorated the lawn around Benton Consolidated High School. Each flag commemorated a life lost in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

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Students at Benton Consolidated High School planted 2,977 flags in honor of the victims of 9/11.

Kim Bridwell, a science teacher and the Young Americans for Freedom sponsor at the school, said it was a completely student-led effort. Students in the club collected the flags and brought together volunteers to plant the flags on Saturday morning.

More than 20 students worked for roughly three hours to cover the school's lawn. Bridwell said she was impressed by the response from the community.

“We were actually shocked to see how many people would slow down and honk their horns and wave at us and thank us for this project,” said Bridwell.

Cole Buchanan, a senior, said the goal, in part, was to recapture the sense of community that came in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.

“We didn’t really get to experience that firsthand and see how connected and how unified the country was,” said Buchanan. “I think through teaching them about 9/11 we can kind of bring that unity back.”

Bridwell was early in her second year of teaching in September 2001. In her first hour class, she heard that one of the World Trade Center buildings was on fire — but it wasn’t until the news of the second building that they all turned on the news.

Bridwell said she remembers that day vividly, but the students who organized Wednesday’s memorial wouldn’t be born for another several years.

According to Jackson Zettler, also a senior, the flags are a way to create a sense of remembrance, even for students too young to have experienced 9/11.

“I want them to remember that moment, of course,” said Zettler. “But also, we want them to honor the lives lost... and to have some pride in America for how we responded to those attacks.”

For Buchanan, the flags are a way to capture the scale of the event.

“There’s really no words to explain it,” said Buchanan. “You can see the 2,977 flags and see just how many that is.”