Tuesday is the 17th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and events to remember the victims are starting this weekend all over the country.

At Liberty State Park, the state's official 9/11 memorial called Empty Sky was the backdrop for an annual 5K attended by victim's families. The memorial's twin wall bears the names of more than 700 New Jersey residents who died during the attack.

Cynthia Tumulty Ollemar is on the board of the 9/11 Memorial Foundation. She lost her husband, Lance, in the south tower of the World Trade Center, and she still feels the loss.

"It's always there…It never goes away," she says. "He was really a guy who lived life and I really try to make that my way of honoring him. To be happy and enjoy my life."

The 5K had a poignant start as runners and walkers passed through the twin walls of the Empty Sky memorial before the race kicked off along the Hudson River waterfront. It was complete with police bagpipes and views of the Statue of Liberty.

The race also helps to raise money. Seven years after it was dedicated, the memorial remains unfinished. It still need more than $2 million to be completed. Families are asking the state and lawmakers for help get those funds.

Runners want the memorial to be completed for generations growing up who don't have their own memories of 9/11.

"It's part of the lessons that I teach…comparing it to other events in history," said Michael Franco, a history teacher from Kearny. "This year, interestingly, the kids that I have are the first generation of kids that are born after 9/11…It's interesting to talk to kids who actually never lived through it.”