Dutchess County police and elected officials held Friday the first of many Sept. 11 remembrance ceremonies that are scheduled this weekend throughout the Hudson Valley.

The early morning tribute in Downtown Poughkeepsie to people who died during and after 9/11 is personal to the organizer, Dutchess County Family Court Judge Tracy MacKenzie.

"The first person I want to mention is my uncle," she told the crowd on Market Street about her uncle Terrence Mulvey.

Mulvey was a first-grade NYPD detective who responded to ground zero in the days following the 9/11 attacks.

Mackenzie shared that her uncle died Dec. 1, 2021 after a long battle with 9/11-related cancer.

"He wasn't the only story. There's so many stories just like his of those who we've lost," Mackenzie added.

About 2,000 people have died from 9/11-related illnesses since the attacks 21 years ago, according to research by Mount Sinai Hospital.

Mackenzie doesn't want them to be forgotten.

"You don't think of it. We think of what happened on the day of the attacks, but there are people still suffering losses - 9/11 cancer affects so many people, so many people," she added.

She's glad she had a moment to honor her uncle and keep people aware that the 9/11 death toll is always rising.

"It's still happening, still happening on a regular basis. We're losing people, and it's so sad," MacKenzie said.

MacKenzie also mentioned her uncle went on to be a teacher after he retired from the NYPD and ran his local Toys For Tots drive for 34 straight years. She wanted people to know that many of the people who are dying at a rate of two per week of 9/11-related illnesses, were true servants to their communities.