In the hours prior to this year’s memorial to the victims of the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, passengers on an outgoing Royal Caribbean cruise ship gathered at the bow and side to gaze down at Bayonne’s memorial.
For many on the shore – who began to gather more than two hours prior to the twilight ceremony – this might have been the last opportunity to view Zorbas Tsereteli’s “To Struggle Against World Terrorism” monument, the 100-foot high structure located at Harbor View Park that was donated by the people of Russia.
The park is expected to be closed to the public within weeks. The land has been sold to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and they plan to move the monument to make way for a container port.
“We must never let such hatred take root in our heart. We must be courageous without being twisted by revenge.” – Mayor Mark Smith
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Appealing to the best within us
Rabbi Gordon Gladstone, of Temple Beth Am, served as this year’s moderator, and in his prayers for the fallen, urged the public not to blame the Muslim faith for the acts of a handful of terrorists.
“Little did we know on that fateful day that our lives would be changed forever,” said Mayor Mark Smith in his comments. He said people went to work and other activities as they did any other day, and suddenly the events that transpired “paralyzed an entire nation” as people stared in horror at TV screens or, as was the case in much of Hudson County, across the Hudson River as the disaster unfolded.
And then, he said, “People all across the nation sprang into action, responding with the very best our nation has to offer. Without regard to their own safety, our rescue workers, police officers, firefighters, and EMS workers sprang into action. While thousands were lost that day, many more were saved because of their courageous actions.”
But, he said, nothing that can be said at a ceremony can completely heal the wounds family members suffer from their losses that day.
“How do you fight back against pure evil?” he asked. “To start, we must never let such hatred take root in our heart. We must be courageous without being twisted by revenge. We must be clear thinking, forever on guard, but, most importantly, we as a community, as Americans, and a nation must never abandon our American ideals. We must never compromise our American principles. We must never give up our American liberty.”
He said while the monument serves as a poignant reminder, the real monument to the innocent victims is in the way Americans live their lives. For some, those remarks seem to foreshadow the end of access to Harbor Park and the relocation of the monument – both of which were seen on the nationally televised New York Giants game on Sunday.
For Frank Perrucci, the chairman of the Bayonne Remembers…September 11 Committee, the location of the monument is hugely important because of its location at the end of the Peninsula at Bayonne Harbor, which sits across New York Harbor from where the Twin Towers once stood.
Meanwhile, religious leaders from Bayonne’s churches and synagogues gathered to offer prayers and light candles, seeking to heal the vast wound left by the attacks. They included Bishop Thomas Donato of St. Henry’s Church, Rev. Dorothy Patterson of the Wallace Temple AME Zion Church, Father Joseph Barone of Our Lady of the Assumption Church, Father Gregory G. Perez of Trinity Parish in Bergen Point, Rev. Maciej J. Zajack of St. Henry’s, Father George Greiss of Saint Anthony and Saint Abanoub Coptic Church, and Father Robert Pachana of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church.
“We remember them today, and we remember them now as the sun sets and our hearts are filled with wonder and awe with a questioning doubt,” said Bishop Donato, as he celebrated a “God of love and life” who has given people a gift of peace. “We remember them in a special way, as one tear drop, 40-feet high.”
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.