Litchfield Park teacher honors brother through 9/11 Tower Challenge

He was that protector. He looked out for me, even being the older sister. He was always there for me. He was my voice of reason.”

Colleen Koblinski

Register for the Tower Challenge:

Visit 100club.org

When Colleen Koblinski climbs the stairs at State Farm Stadium this September, her brother’s name will be on her back.

Koblinski, who teaches at The Hilltop School for the Arts, participates in the 100 Club of Arizona’s 9/11 Tower Challenge in honor of her younger brother, Kevin Koblinski, who died of cancer after a 20-year career in law enforcement.

“He was the best, most amazing brother I could have ever asked for,” Koblinski said.

Kevin worked for the sheriff’s department, the Arizona Department of Public Safety and later as a federal officer with Homeland Security. After graduating from federal law enforcement training during the COVID-19 pandemic, he learned that a pain he had been feeling in his elbow was osteosarcoma.

Within weeks, doctors told him his arm would need to be amputated.

Koblinski said her brother never allowed the diagnosis, the amputation or chemotherapy to define him.

“He never let the amputation and the cancer stop him,” she said. “He didn’t just sit around and wallow in his thoughts.”

Kevin loved hockey, football, cars and family. The siblings grew up in Buffalo, New York, before moving to Arizona, bringing with them a deep love of the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres. In Arizona, Kevin played hockey with other law enforcement officers on Team Patriot, helped organize tournaments and raised money for the 100 Club.

“He loved his family. He loved his friends,” Koblinski said. “He was that protector. He looked out for me, even being the older sister. He was always there for me. He was my voice of reason.”

That sense of brotherhood continued after Kevin became ill. Koblinski said members of his hockey team showed up at 5 a.m. in jerseys before his amputation to walk him into the hospital. The 100 Club also stepped in to help him financially after the surgery.

“They wasted no time to step up and support,” she said. “No one asked them to come out and help my brother, but they did because that’s just who they are.”

Kevin died in 2024 at age 38. Koblinski said he worked until about a week before his death while going through inpatient chemotherapy treatments.

“He didn’t tell us a lot of what was wrong,” she said. “We didn’t know until after how bad it was because he didn’t want us to worry.”

For Koblinski, the Tower Challenge has become a source of both remembrance and resolve. She first participated virtually in 2020, then trained to climb after recovering from knee surgeries.

Each year since Kevin’s death, she has worn one of his hockey jerseys.

“I feel like that’s me carrying him and carrying his name and his memory alive,” she said.

The climb is physically demanding, but Koblinski said she thinks of those inside the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

“The people that were in the Twin Towers that day, they didn’t have any choice,” she said. “I have a choice, and this is what I choose to do.”

At Hilltop, Koblinski also teaches students about Sept. 11. She said the goal is to teach the facts of the tragedy without frightening students, while also showing the importance of service and kindness.

Students have written thank-you notes to first responders, nurses, teachers and others in the community.

“It doesn’t cost anything to be kind and say thank you,” she said.

More than two years after Kevin’s death, Koblinski said people still remember his kindness, integrity and spirit.

“He always looked out for everyone,” she said. “He always did right by everyone. He always kept his word.”

The 100 Club of Arizona supports public safety members and their families through financial assistance, scholarships and other programs. Its Arizona 9/11 Tower Challenge invites law enforcement officers, firefighters, military members, families and supporters to climb 110 flights of stairs, representing the 2,071 steps New York City firefighters took during the World Trade Center attacks.

This year’s Glendale challenge is scheduled for 7 a.m. Sept. 11 at State Farm Stadium. A Flagstaff event is scheduled for 7 a.m. Sept. 9 at Northern Arizona University. Registration and more information are available at 100club.org.

Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as those meet our  Civility Guidelines.