Memories and Emotions Abound at 9/11 Memorial on Eve of Service to Remember Victims in New York
NEW YORK — Along the hallowed plaza of the National September 11 Memorial Wednesday, preparation work for the service to honor the memory of the nearly 3,000 people killed in the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, continued in earnest as memories and emotions abounded among workers and tourists alike.
"When it first happened, I was too young to understand what was going on in the world. But as I got older, I started to understand that it was a terrorist attack," said Robert Peacock, 26, of Glendale, Queens, who was busy cleaning a portion of the bronze panel bearing the names of the dead around one of the memorial pools on the Memorial Plaza in downtown New York City on Wednesday.
For the last four days, Peacock and his colleagues from FCC Fabrication have been working to get the panels gleaming. As he cleaned name after name, he said the gravity of what happened here has hit him hard at times.
"It does hit you hard sometimes. Just polishing these names every day, realizing how many people died here. I get a sense of pride knowing that I get to take care of this memorial," he said.
Peacock said he lost his football coach in the terrorist attack, but can only remember his first name, Steve.
"I was watching TV and I saw his name pop up as missing, then I realized he was actually killed in the terrorist attacks. There is actually a tree in Juniper Valley Park in Middle Village [New York] dedicated to his name," he explained.
On Thursday, he said he will be watching his memory unfold on TV again.
Hundreds of people strolled around the Memorial's twin reflecting pools dotted in parts with personalized memorials to individual names. A teddy bear here, a string of white roses there. The Memorial's twin reflecting pools, according to the Memorial's website, are each nearly an acre in size. They also represent the largest man-made waterfalls in North America and stand where the Twin Towers once stood.
The names of every person who died in the 2001 attacks as well as the World Trade Center bombing in February 1993 are inscribed into the bronze panels edging pools in memory of the largest loss of life from a foreign attack on U.S. soil and the "greatest single loss of rescue personnel in American history."
Lisa Graphenteen, a Minnesota resident who was on a business trip to New York City, was also among the throng of people embracing the site for the first time since the terrorist attack.
"I think it is beautiful," she said of the Memorial. "The water has this peace."
Recalling Sept. 11, she explained that it's something she cannot forget.
"It's just one of those things you remember the day where you were. … I was at work and I think I pulled up the Internet and right away what I felt was shock, sadness, disbelief, that this could happen here," she said. "I remember my co-workers coming together."
Watching coverage of the Sept. 11 memorial service is now a family event in her home.
"Every year I watch something. There is always coverage. We actually made it a family tradition. We watch with the kids because they were not even born. I still get emotional. Even the children do as well," she said.
"I was just down by Battery Park watching the [New York City] Police Department sing "God Bless America" and I was actually tearing up," she ended.
Chris Connor, a former New York City fire fighter and Christian who responded to the 9/11 attacks said he remembers the incredible support from the public after the attacks, but had special thanks for the people who prayed.
"The one thing that stands out in my memory above all others is the outpouring of support from volunteers. People were sending us clothes and food; but most of all, prayers, and some people prayed for us. People I'll never meet," he said.
