Steven Santiago, now a corporal with the North Catasauqua Police Department, sang the national anthem during the Sept. 11 remembrance ceremony at Mission BBQ, 1421 Grape St., Whitehall.

What made Santiago’s emotional presentation of the anthem so special to him, and to those in attendance, was that on Sept. 11, 2001, Santiago was an New York Police Department sergeant working at ground zero. Santiago spent many days in the area of the collapsed twin towers, providing security and support. He also participated in the efforts at the Staten Island landfill to identify victims of the attack.

Throughout his tenure, he also responded to mass demonstrations, blackouts and Super Storm Sandy in 2012.

He retired from NYPD after 20 years of service.

Santiago is also a retired Army command sergeant major, where he completed 29 years of service with two overseas deployments.