Nipomo firefighter to take part in 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb

Sept. 11, 2001, marks a pivotal, tragic moment in our country’s history — a moment that has defined the nation in the years since.

For Anthony DiBernardo, the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and the plane that crashed in a Pennsylvania field all defined him in a new way: They inspired his desire to give to the community.

“Like everybody, 9/11 was an impactful moment in my mind,” he said. “But it was really one of the reasons I think I chose to become a firefighter.”

Fifteen years after that momentous event, DiBernardo — now a sales engineer and volunteer firefighter with the Nipomo Firefighters’ Association — is planning on reliving that feeling as part of the Nashville 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb next week.

Each year, firefighters from around the country come together at the William R. Snodgrass Tennessee Tower in downtown Nashville to climb 110 stories in full gear, just like the New York City Fire Department firefighters did on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, to try to rescue those trapped in the burning twin towers.

Only 343 firefighters — the number that perished that day — are allowed to take part in the event each year. Each firefighter is given a nametag for one of the fallen firefighters, which they wear throughout the entire climb.

“It’ll be emotional for all of us, I know,” DiBernardo said. “I imagine we’ll be crying like babies on that final lap.”

DiBernardo said he knew he wanted to be a part of the Nashville event after competing at the Scott Firefighter Stairclimb to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in Seattle earlier this year.

This climb won’t be easy.

Firefighters carry between 95 and 105 pounds of gear up the building’s 28 flights a grueling four times to mimic the number of flights the New York firefighters would have had to climb on their attempt to rescue people from the 110-story towers.

To prepare for it, DiBernardo has trained for about two hours every day, most of the time in full gear.

He even drew some stares at the Cal Poly Recreation Center, where he chose to work out many days.

“I’ve really got to thank Cal Poly because they let me show up in full gear and use their equipment,” he said. “It would turn a few heads from students to see a guy chugging along on the machines in full gear.”

DiBernardo is raising funds through GoFundMe.com before his trip to pay for travel expenses and to go toward the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, which supports the families of those affected by 9/11. As of Monday, he had raised $625 of his $750 goal.

“I just really hope to make the Central Coast proud,” he said.

This story was originally published September 5, 2016 at 9:00 PM with the headline "Nipomo firefighter to take part in 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb."