Neighbors in Middletown gathered Sunday to remember the 40 residents who died 21 years ago on Sept. 11.

Each year, the number of people that show up at the memorial seems to be greater and greater.

The Middletown community is a large commuter town that forever has ties to 9/11.

This year, not even the pouring rain kept residents from piling in and paying their respects.

"Our Middletown train station is very symbolic, obviously, because many of the individuals that we lost on Sept. 11 took this very train to New York City that day," said Middletown Township Mayor Tony Perry.

People in Middletown reflected back on what they saw and felt that day.

"It was like watching a slow-motion movie. Plane hit the second tower, big explosion, I just about fell off the picnic table," recalled Andrew Butzko, Commander of Post 515 American Legion in Middletown.

What most people expressed was the feeling they felt in the heart of togetherness and being united as a country after the World Trade Center attacks.

"People did come together right after 9/11. They also came together right after Hurricane Sandy," said the Post's Lisa Jeleniski. "It shouldn't have to be a catastrophe for people to stay together."

"All you hear is that bagpiper in the background. You see our fire department raising that American flag, you see our police officers saluting and our firefighters saluting," Perry pointed out.

Middletown Chief of Police, Craig Weber shared his thoughts about those who fell ill in the years following the attacks.

"Years later, due to a 9/11 illness, we lost one of our most beloved officers, Detective Lieutenant Joseph Cappriotti," Weber said.