Photo: David Paine and Jay Winuk © Courtesy of 9/11 Day
Six months after the September 11 attacks, David Paine and Jay Winuk began asking how a day associated with unimaginable loss might also become a force for good.
For Winuk, the question was deeply personal. His younger brother, Glenn Winuk, an attorney and volunteer firefighter/EMT, died in the line of duty at the World Trade Center after running toward danger to help others. Together, Paine and Winuk set out to “take back the day,” transforming the anniversary of 9/11 into a national day of service, unity, and remembrance.
Nearly 25 years later, that grassroots idea has grown into 9/11 Day (911day.org), one of the country’s largest annual service movements. On September 11, 2026, the nonprofit is calling on millions of Americans to “Unite for Good” through volunteer projects, charitable acts, and community service across all 50 states.
From Grief to a National Movement
9/11 Day began in 2002 with a simple conviction: a meaningful way to honor those who were killed, injured, or forever changed by the attacks was to carry forward the spirit of service that emerged in their aftermath.
“Our goal is to transform the 9/11 anniversary, for all time, into an annual moment of national reflection, unity, and doing good,” said Paine, president and co-founder of 9/11 Day. “We want to reclaim the day.”
The movement steadily gained national support. In 2007, Paine and Winuk received the President’s Call to Service Award. Two years later, Congress and President Barack Obama formally established September 11 as a National Day of Service and Remembrance through the bipartisan Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act.
Since then, tens of millions of Americans have annually participated in acts of service. The organization’s first large-scale meal-packing event, held in New York City in 2016, brought together 1,600 volunteers who assembled 503,000 meals. By 2025, the program had expanded to 24 cities, where more than 27,000 volunteers packed 9.4 million meals.
When the COVID-19 pandemic halted in-person gatherings in 2020, the organization launched “9/11 Day at Home,” drawing millions of people into safe, meaningful acts of service from their homes and communities.
17+ Million Meals, 50 Cities
For the 25th anniversary, 9/11 Day is planning its largest initiative yet. More than 50,000 volunteers from over 800 companies are expected to pack more than 17 million shelf-stable meals in 50 of the nation’s largest cities. Organizers believe it will be the largest single day of corporate volunteerism in U.S. history.
The meals will be donated to Feeding America-affiliated food banks and other hunger-relief organizations serving local communities. U.S. Hunger, Kids Around the World, and Meals of Hope will help source supplies and manage logistics.
Professional sports organizations will also play a major role. Teams and representatives from the NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, and MLS are expected to host or join 9/11 Day’s meal-packing events. Major League Baseball and the New York Mets plan to co-host a flagship meal-packing event on September 11 at Citi Field before that evening’s Mets-Yankees Subway Series game at Yankee Stadium.
“My brother Glenn, like so many courageous first responders, sprang into action to save people he didn’t know on 9/11,” Winuk said. “But you don’t have to run into a burning building to be heroic in your community or in the lives of others.”
Reaching a New Generation
More than 100 million Americans alive today are too young to remember the attacks or the period of unity and service that followed.
To help bridge that gap, 9/11 Day has expanded its youth education efforts with free lesson plans, teacher guides, and classroom resources.
The organization has also launched a $3 million grant program, funded by AmeriCorps and the Popeyes Foundation, to support service projects, many of them by and for students. A new volunteer platform developed with Eventbrite will allow people to find local opportunities or create projects for family, friends, and colleagues.
A national “Unite for Good” campaign will launch in August, encouraging Americans of all ages to pledge acts of service. An independent documentary from filmmakers Greg Jacobs and Jon Siskel will also trace the movement’s 25-year journey.
On September 11, 2026, 9/11 Day will mark almost a quarter-century of turning remembrance into action. The next chapter will be written by the people who choose to serve.
SOURCE: 9/11 Day
