East Meadow remembers lives lost

Aaron Schlectman of East Meadow Boy Scout Troop 157 stood solemnly at the community Sept. 11 ceremony.

Susan Grieco/Herald

The annual ceremony brings local community groups and organizations together, like the East Meadow Fire Department, right, and Boy Scouts, at left.

Susan Grieco/Herald

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An audio glitch toward the end of the East Meadow Fire Department’s Sept. 11 remembrance ceremony last Thursday resulted in a performance of “God Bless America,” sung by those in attendance, without musical accompaniment.

With candles in hand, the hundreds who gathered at Veterans Memorial Park sang words that have become steeped in patriotism and unity in the post-9/11 world. The unplanned a capella performance captured the spirit of the evening’s proceedings.

Seven local residents died in the terrorist attacks — four who worked in the World Trade Center, two firefighters and a police officer. Other residents have since died of illnesses they contracted as a result of their work at ground zero in the aftermath of the attacks.

The annual ceremony honors those residents and comforts their families. It was hosted once again by longtime EMFD volunteer Glen Carpentier. “Twelve times we’ve marked a Sept. 11 ceremony, and 12 times we’ve paused in remembrance and unity,” he said. “Instead of turning us against each other, tragedy has brought us together.”

Carpentier reminded attendees that with the passage of time, it is up to those who experienced that day to tell others what happened. “Here we tell the story so generations unborn will never forget,” he said.

He acknowledged the local groups and organizations that make East Meadow a vibrant community — the Kiwanis, Lions and Rotary clubs, the Chamber of Commerce, senior centers, veterans groups, houses of worship, the public library — as well as town, county and state officials.

East Meadow Boy Scout Troops 362 and 157, and Girl Scout Troop 1061, also took part in the ceremony, which was graced by a new memorial: an 1,800-pound statue with a footstone listing the names of those who died, and a steel beam from the World Trade Center, installed in the southeast corner of the park, a joint project of Kiwanis, the chamber and elected officials.

When EMFD chiefs Robert Salveson, James Kane and Joe Lennon were asked to place a wreath on the ground in remembrance of 9/11 victims — a ceremony tradition — they placed it at the base of the memorial.