It's the 5th year of the Pepperdine memorial to the victims of the 9/11 attacks. Prep work had been going on all week and the flags themselves went up late Saturday afternoon. In the past, dawn would break on September 11 and there would be the flags. This year, the display opened three days early.

Events include the annual Ride to the Flags, which starts at the naval base in Point Mugu and concludes at the Pepperdine lawn. This year's ride takes place on Sept. 16. From the web site:

It is with great honor that we at the White Heart Foundation announce our main beneficiary of the Ride to the Flags V - SFC Cory Remsburg.

SFC Remsburg served 10 tours in Iraq and Afghanistan with the elite Army Rangers. On his 10th tour, SFC Remsburg was severely injured by an IED blast and he suffered traumatic brain damage.

Having to relearn how to walk, he is in need of rehabilitation machines so that he may exercise daily at his residence once he completes his in-patient care at Casa Colina in Pomona.

SFC Remsburg has given so much for this country. Helping to afford these machines for him is the least we can do.

There's also a short prayer service at Pepperdine on Sept. 11. And for more about Ryan Sawtelle, the student who created Pepperdine's 9/11 tradition, click here.