Every Sept. 11 morning, University of Wisconsin students walk up Bascom Hill and see 3,000 flags lined up to remember the victims of the 2001 attacks.

The tradition started in 2006 with the UW College Republican club and the Young Americans Foundation, which has since left campus but continues donating flags to the effort each year.

Over the years, the UW College Democrats club and the Vets for Vets student group joined the effort, as did the Theta Chi fraternity.

Hayley Young, a College Democrats member, said events like Sept. 11 remind students that despite any disagreements in political beliefs, they are all part of the same community and country.

“Our ability to have different opinions is protected by events like 9/11,” Young said.

"Time is passing. Yet, for the USA, there will be no forgetting September the 11th." Today @UWMadison remembers. pic.twitter.com/k1aFSGzpJT

— GOP Badgers (@GOPBadgers) September 11, 2014

This year saw the biggest volunteer turnout, said UW junior and College Republicans chair Charlie Hoffmann, adding he hopes participation continues to grow. The more time passes between the tragic day in 2001 and the present, the more important acts like these become, Hoffmann said.

The campus organization Vets for Vets, which provides support for student veterans, reservists and the National Guard, also helped with the event.

“I just remember being pulled out of school and not understanding why,” said Dan Haffner, a Vets for Vets member, of his memories of Sept. 11.

He said tributes like this make veterans feel appreciated, as they see non-military members help remember those who lost their lives in the attack.