Remembrance at Fort Totten

As they have for the last 31 years, retired and active duty Army officers who served with the 77th Infantry Division or one of its successor units gathered in the chapel at Fort Totten in Bayside recently to remember their deceased brothers in arms.
The ceremony, on Sunday, November 4, brought chaplains from Christian and Jewish faiths as well as retired commanders of the 77th, to speak of their comrades from World War II, Korea, Viet Nam and the wars, small and large, which followed.
A few family members were present; none spoke of their relatives.
It was up to those who shared the experiences which forever set them apart from civilians, no matter how close they might otherwise be, to remember them, or to call on those assembled to reach out for information that had escaped their Reserve Officers Association, which conducted the event.
After the trooping of the colors, the salutes to the flag, musical selections, benedictions and eulogies, the names of about 20 soldiers to be honored were read, each followed by a chime.
A new tradition was added to the day’s ceremonies five years ago.
In the area of Fort Totten which is still used by the U.S. Army Reserve, there stands a memorial to six reservists from the 77th Regional Readiness Command (the last designation of the old 77th, which will leave the fort for good in the near future) who died as civilians - emergency responders to the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.
There they again heard the prayers and music, holding their salutes for “Taps” and singing along for “God Bless America.”
Major General Richard S. Colt, who commanded the 77th on the day the towers fell, delivered remarks, noting that these were the first to be killed in action under his command and that only five of the six had been recovered.
Nothing he said was as telling as a simple phrase he uttered before the ceremony began.
Colt, one of the first at the scene, walked slowly to the gray stone and, leaning forward, reached out to touch each name in turn. When he realized he was being photographed, Colt, visibly moved, drew his hand behind his back and, turning to the photographer, said, “My boys.”