With a look of determination and hope in her eyes while staring at what has become of New York City’s skyline, Theresa Genardi, the chief ranger at Liberty State Park, admits that security has increased at the place that welcomes almost five million visitors every year.
“We used to have tight security around here, and now we are working on turning it up a notch,” Genardi said during an interview at the Jersey City 1,200-acre park last week.
The attacks on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11 have been the main reason why Genardi and her staff of nine rangers have been receiving orders from the state to patrol the park’s grounds more diligently than ever to ensure the public’s safety. The park used to be open until 10 p.m. during the week, but since the WTC disaster, the park now closes at 6:30 p.m.
“We are working on many initiatives to provide the best possible security for our guests,” she said.
Sept. 10 was just an average day for Genardi. She had several meetings during the day, and at night she stayed a little later than usual to watch a lightning storm above the city’s skyline. Afterward, she went to her home in Morris County, mentally preparing for the next day.
“I remember I was preparing myself for a busy week of work,” she said.
Almost eight hours later, Genardi woke up, turned on the television and was shocked to see what had happened less than a mile away from her office near the Flag Plaza area of the park.
“As soon as I saw the first tower get hit, I left my house immediately,” she said.
Genardi got dressed and made it to the park just in time to witness the second hijacked plane hit. As she watched the towers burn in flames and the black blinding smoke eclipse the sky, Genardi thought to herself that perhaps the tall green national landmark in her park could very likely be the next target.
“I stared in disbelief thinking the Statue of Liberty might be next. We immediately evacuated the place, and prepared relief areas throughout the train terminal and the Liberty Walk area of the park,” she said.
Less than an hour after the WTC disaster unfolded, hundreds of paramedics, law enforcement agents, doctors, the American Red Cross and volunteers arrived at the scene ready to help. People who had private boats in the park’s Liberty Landing Marina sailed to New York to help transport survivors from Ground Zero to the park’s triage centers.
“Everybody showed up. The National Guard, state police, FBI, the Coast Guard, you name it, they came,” Genardi said.
While she coordinated much of the relief effort and managed several triage areas, she was stunned after looking at the faces of the walking wounded that came from the city. Their look of despair touched Genardi emotionally.
“We saw mothers with their babies, men in business suits, and they were all covered in a thick layer of dust,” she said. “You could see tear marks on some people’s faces from all the dust they had.”
On that day Genardi and many people from her staff worked more than 20 hours non-stop, helping men and women, buying supplies, providing support and security, and being there for each other. The park’s rangers were a team prior to the Sept. 11 attacks, and now they had become a family.
“We all wore the same uniform that day,” she said. “That was really American. Never in my wildest dreams did I think this would happen.”
Ranger dreams
Genardi grew up in Nutley. Since a young age she was interested in nature and law enforcement, and after studying criminal justice at higher education institutions, Genardi decided to become a ranger in the late 1980s.
“This was what I wanted,” she said, smiling. “To be a working with Mother Nature and people.”
In 1989 she became a full-time ranger at Liberty State Park and in 1994 she moved down to Cheesequake Park in Old Bridge to be the chief ranger there. In 1996 she moved back to Jersey City to be chief ranger at the park where she had begun her career.
“I love this place. This feels like home to me,” she said.
Her job includes ensuring the security of the park’s patrons, handling domestic disputes, issuing summonses to those violate the park’s rules, and controlling the large crowds who come to the park during summer concert events.
Superintendent of the park Stephen Ellis is glad to have Genardi as chief ranger. During a phone interview last week, Ellis said Genardi was one of the most important people during the Sept. 11 attacks at the park.
“She handled the operations terrifically,” Ellis said. “Everyone is very happy to be working with her.”
The park is a green oasis in the middle of metropolitan Northern New Jersey. With magnificent views of New York’s harbor and the Manhattan skyline, it is truly a gem in the Northeast, according to Ellis. The park offers educational and recreational opportunities for the whole family and has ferry access to and from New York.
In recent years there have been disputes between land conservancy groups and major developers regarding the future of the park, but according to Genardi, the mission of LSP is still to “provide a beautiful haven of green landscape for all to enjoy.”