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Mostly Cloudy Long Beach remembers those lost on 9/11
Multiple memorials honor the victims, first responders and their families
County Legislator Denise Ford held her annual 9/11 memorial service at the Virginia Avenue Garden of Remembrance on Friday, one of several ceremonies held throughout the barrier island to honor the sacrifices of the first responders and victims of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, as well as their families and those that have since given their lives for their country at home and abroad.
State Assemblyman Todd Kaminsky and City Manager Jack Schnirman also spoke at the ceremony, while a color guard presented by the Joint Veterans Organization of Long Beach also observed the memorial, including representatives from VFW Post 1384 and the Ladies Auxiliary VFW. Peggy Costigan performed the National Anthem and Deacon Thomas Evrard led those assembled in a closing prayer.
Seven Long Beach residents lost their lives in the attacks, and many firefighters and first responders from the area developed, and later died from, illnesses from working on “the pile.” Ford noted that it’s important to honor not just those that lost their lives on that tragic day, but those first responders still struggling with the physical and mental impact of the event.
“We must remember them and fight for the benefits of those that are suffering and dying of the cancers as a result of the toxins at that site,” Ford said.
She added that the toll of posttraumatic stress disorder should not be overlooked.
“I ask that if you know anyone [who responded], to always make it a point to reach out to them to let them know that their lives are worth living and that we care about them and that we are happy that they survived that day and that we’re happy that they’re amongst us. I think they need that comfort.”
Kaminsky spoke about the initial feeling of shock he felt that day, saying that there were others in the world who had so much hatred in their hearts for those they didn’t even know — those that were simply going to work and earning a living for their families.
“Today we stand shoulder to shoulder resolved to fight that hatred,” Kaminsky said. “To prove that we love life more than they love death. And to prove that there is no cost that we aren’t ready to pay for our freedoms.”
“It’s a day that reminds us how important it is to stand together, proud of our country,” Schnirman added. “And as a community united as one Long Beach, knowing that we can overcome anything together.”
The Town of Hempstead also held its annual sunrise memorial program in Point Lookout, an interactive ceremony in which attendees were invited to cast white carnations upon a tribute fountain and to write the names of loved ones who perished in the attacks or illness related to their work at Ground Zero upon an “inspiration mural.”
The location of the ceremony, on Lido Boulevard at the Loop Parkway, was the same spot where crowds spontaneously gathered in the wake of the attacks in 2001 to look westward and the devastation in Lower Manhattan.
“We are compelled to return to this beach on an annual pilgrimage of personal reflection and renewal in communion with the victims who perished on the saddest day in this nation’s history,” said Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray. “Hundreds of neighbors return to this location each year, the same place where they gathered immediately after the 9-11 attacks, looking toward the site of the once majestic towers in horror and disbelief.”
An 18-foot tall, chromium replica of the World Trade Center was considered to be the focal point of the ceremony along with the inspiration mural depicting the Manhattan skyline.
The City of Long Beach also held a ceremony earlier this morning at 8 a.m. at the Recreation Center where city officials, clergy and Long Beach veterans gathered to remember the lives lost on 9/11.
Later that night the Long Beach Fire Department held its own ceremony to pay tribute to the victims and first responders, firefighters, police, rescue and military servicemen and women. That ceremony took place at the monument located on the median at West Park Avenue at Lafayette Boulevard.
On Sunday, a steel beam recovered form the wreckage of the World Trade Center was dedicated at a ceremony at VFW plaza on West Park Avenue at Grand Boulevard. The monument was installed last December but was formally recognized this weekend.
