Memorial Ceremonies Across Area
Thirteen years removed from the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001, neighborhoods across the Times Newsweekly coverage area will remember in the week ahead those lost in the worst terrorist attack in American history.
All are invited to gather at local parks and plazas for candlelight vigils and memorial services honoring those who died at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and United Airlines Flight 93. The tributes will feature music, poetry, prayers, reading of victims’ names, remarks from elected officials and other tributes.
Some of the memorial events, listed locally in chronological order, include the following:
Maspeth
With the Manhattan skyline in the background, Maspeth residents and activists will gather at Maspeth Memorial Park this Saturday morning, Sept. 6, to honor the victims of 9/11.
As announced, the ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. at the memorial park located at the corner of 69th Street and Grand Avenue. The park is near the headquarters of Squad Co. 288/Haz-Mat 1, the firehouse which lost the most firefighters in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
Firefighters will help lay wreaths at theMaspeth memorial in honor not only of their fallen colleagues but also local residents who died in the attack 13 years ago next Thursday. The program also includes prayers from Rev. Peter Zendzian, pastor of St. Matthias Church; music from Kathleen Nealson and Liz and Bill Huisman; and a poetry reading.
Glendale
Local victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks will be honored in a special way during a ceremony Sunday afternoon, Sept. 7, at the Glendale 9/11 memorial in Forest Park.
Organized by the American Day Parade Committee, the ceremony takes place at 12:30 p.m. at the 9/11 memorial garden near Dry Harbor Playground, located off the corner of 80th Street and Myrtle Avenue.
Along with prayers and songs, the ceremony includes the reading of the names of 42 residents of Glendale, Middle Village, Ridgewood and Woodhaven who died in the attacks on the World Trade Center.
Astoria Heights
PortAuthority employees who died in the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks will be honored in a special way during a memorial ceremony in Astoria Heights on Wednesday night, Sept. 10.
Sponsored by the United Community Civic Association and the Port Authority, the ceremony takes place at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at McManus Memorial Park, located at the corner of 81st Street and the Grand Central Parkway service road.
All are encouraged to participate in the event, which will feature prayers, patriotic tunes and remarks honoring the victims of 9/11.
Woodside residents will gather at Doughboy Playground next Thursday night, Sept. 11, to mark not only the 13th anniversary of the terrorist attacks but also the 200th anniversary of the Star- Spangled Banner.
Sponsored by the Doughboy Park Patriots, a coalition of local civic groups and non-profit organizations, the ceremony takes place from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at the park located on WoodsideAvenue between 55th and 56th streets.
The event will include various reflections on those who died in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks as well asmusic and readings. For more information, email woodsideremembers@gmail.com.
Corona/Elmhurst
The 110th Precinct Community Council will mark the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks during their meeting next Thursday night in Corona. The session takes place at 7 p.m. at Flanders Field VFW Post 150, located at 51-11 108th St.
Deputy Inspector Ronald Leyson, the 110th Precinct’s commanding officer, will recite the names of NYPD personnel who died as a result of the terrorist attacks. The community council will also present a plaque to Leyson honoring 9/11 victims which will be displayed at the precinct’s Elmhurst stationhouse.
Forest Hills
Remsen Cemetery Park will once again host Forest Hills’ annual tribute to the victims of 9/11 with a ceremony next Thursday night.
Sponsored in part by the Forest Hills Community and Civic Association, the vigil begins at 7:30 p.m. at the park located at the corner of Trotting Course Lane andAlderton Street, just north of Metropolitan Avenue.
The ceremony will include special tributes to three 9/11 victims with links to Forest Hills: Firefighter Peter Nelson, Forest Hills VolunteerAmbulance Corps member Richard Allen Pearlman and Stephen Hoffman.
A half-hour earlier, members of the ambulance corps will honor Pearlman and other 9/11 victimswitha7p.m.ceremony outside their headquarters located at 92-29 Metropolitan Ave, one block east of Remsen Cemetery Park.
Middle Village
Hundreds of local residents will gather on the ballfields of Juniper Valley Park next Thursday night for a candlelight vigil to mark the attacks’ 13th anniversary.
Organized by the 9-11 Candlelight Vigil Committee of Queens, the vigil gets underway at 7:30 p.m. on the ballfields adjacent to the Juniper Valley Park 9/11 Memorial Garden, located near the flagpole off the intersection of Juniper Boulevard South and 78th Street.
As in previous years, the ceremony includes music, poem recitations and the reading of names of local victims. All are encouraged to bring candles or flashlights, an American flag and a lawn chair .
Manhattan
Family members of those who died in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks will again gather at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum next Thursday morning for the city’s official anniversary ceremony.
The program pays tribute to those who died in the attacks as well as the six victims of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and the first responders who have died in recent years from illnesses linked to their participation in the rescue and recovery efforts following the Twin Towers destruction in 2001.
Officially, the ceremony begins with a moment of silence and the tolling of bells at 8:46 a.m., the time when the hijacked American Airlines Flight 11 struck the World Trade Center’s North Tower. As in previous years, houses of worship across the city are asked to toll their bells at that tragic moment.
Following the moment of silence, family members and first responders will begin reading the names of the nearly 3,000 victims of the attacks. The reading will pause for five other moments of silence marking the tragedy of 9/11:
– 9:03 a.m., when the hijacked United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the World Trade Center’s South Tower;
– 9:37 a.m., when the hijacked American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into The Pentagon;
– 9:59 a.m., when the World Trade Center’s South Tower collapsed due to damages from the attack;
– 10:03 a.m., when the hijacked United Airlines Flight 93-while passengers attempted to retake control of the plane from terrorists-crashed in Shanksville, Pa.; and
– 10:28 a.m., when the World Trade Center’s North Tower collapsed from the attack.
The memorial ceremony is expected to conclude at about noon.
One final tribute to the victims of 9/11 will appear on the New York City skyline at sundown next Thursday. The Tribute in Light-88 searchlights located at the corner of West and Morris streets and pointed to the sky-will be illuminated to represent the lost Twin Towers.
The Tribute in Light, which- during fair weather-is visible from various vantage points across Brooklyn and Queens- will remain on through the night before fading away at sunrise on Sept. 12.
