Sunlight barely breaking through the gray clouds over the New York skyline greeted those who gathered at the foot of Grand Street on the Jersey City waterfront for this year’s 9/11 Memorial Service, “Reflections,” on Sept. 11.
Most of the public officials and organizers at the monument at the end of Grand Street vowed to maintain vigilance, to keep the residents of the city from becoming complacent, and to keep the memory alive of those who perished that awful Tuesday 13 years ago.
Despite that spirit, the crowd was sparse, leaving many vacant folding chairs at the start of the ceremony, although hundreds of commuters walking to the PATH entrance or ferry dock paused to watch or snap a cell phone photo. This was the 13th anniversary of the attack, and like all painful events, some of its intensity may have faded over time.
State Sen. Sandra Cunningham paid tribute to the police and fire personnel who had rushed into the burning Twin Towers across the river to help save others, and cautioned the public that the danger has not passed. She quoted President Barack Obama’s speech on the growing danger imposed by a new terrorist group in Iraq: “We can handle anything if we remain together.”
“We can handle anything if we remain together.” – Sandra Cunningham
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Police dogs patrolled the perimeter sniffing for trouble.
8:46 a.m.
Although the foot of Grand Street was alive with the sound of music and voices on Sept. 11, everything stopped for a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m., and all faces turned toward the New York skyline as a fire boat from the North Hudson Regional Fire Department sprayed the air with red, white and blue plumes of water.
But it was not the display that drew the attention of the assembled people, but a memory of horror from 13 years ago, when the first of two planes slammed into the side of the World Trade Center.
Rabbi Debra Hechan of Temple Beth El said in her invocation that people knew where they were and what they were doing that day when the planes struck, and many knew victims who died or struggled to escape the plume of dust when the towers fell.
Joe Napolitano Sr. pointed to one of two monuments that mark the waterfront – one of which was made up of the twisted beams salvaged from the ruins of the former World Trade Center towers.
“America was twisted and mangled,” said Gary Nye, co-chairman of the 9/11 Committee of Jersey City. “But like this piece of steel, we remain strong.”
The monument is made up of rusted beams from the towers that had fallen, each from a different part of the structure, all together forming the shape of the letter A, which stands for America.
Jersey City lost 37 residents as a result of the attack, but thousands were witnesses or were caught in the dust when the two towers fell.
That day, Jersey City became a staging ground for recovery and relief efforts, although it soon became clear that either people survived or they died. There were far fewer injured as a result of the attack than first responders expected.
A stone like a grave marker stands near the waterfront with the names of the 37 people etched on it. Many firefighters and others went over to help with the rescue efforts on the Manhattan side.
Nearby Liberty State Park became a triage site for those commuters or workers who were injured.
There were two moments of silence for each of the air plane strikes and during that silence. The intensity of the moment was palpable, as if everybody held their breath until it passed.
Gregory Rivera chimed a bell to the name of each victim as they were read by Teresa Saltarelli, Marine Costello, Michael Ricciardone, Robin Allen, Frank Carobelo and John Guaraní.
James Shea, Jersey City public safety director, said that over time the horror of losing loved ones naturally fades, and people begin to remember the happy moments associated with those people.
Former Governor Jim McGreevey, Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, and others spoke briefly about the need to remember, before moving to the waterside where they cast a freedom wreath into the Hudson River.
The Jersey City 9/11 Memorial Committee has worked with the city since 2002 to maintain a ceremony each year on Sept. 11 to observe the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and the forced crash in a Pennsylvania field of a commercial aircraft which had been taken over by terrorists.
Fulop said each person was affected by the tragedy in a different way, and that all were valid responses to a very powerful and tragic moment in American history.
Musical performances by Arnold Valentino, Wings of Joy, Daniel Siford, Teresa Blunda, Isaacson Beteau, Danny Rewttig, Paul Baccash and Arnold Valentino helped give the ceremony a spiritual feeling, concluding with a rendition of The Beatles “Let It Be.”
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.