Nesconset memorial keeps 9/11 responders’ legacies alive
A Nesconset memorial honored 9/11 responders who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001, and those who later died from 9/11-related illnesses on Saturday.
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Families, friends and community members gathered Saturday at the 9/11 Responders Remembered Memorial Park in Nesconset for the memorial’s 15th annual naming ceremony.
The ceremony honored first responders who died on Sept. 11, 2001, as well as responders who have died in the years since from illnesses connected to their work at ground zero.
More than 100 names were added to the memorial this year, according to organizers.
For Bridget Gormley, the ceremony is a chance to honor her father, Billy, an FDNY firefighter who responded to ground zero on 9/11.
“He was an FDNY firefighter who responded on 9/11. He spent quite a bit of time down there. He survived the day and got sick 16 years later,” Gormley said. “It's an honor to have him on the wall. His name next to everyone else's, immortalized, if you will,” she said.
While some people attended to honor loved ones whose names are on the memorial, others came to pay their respects to all of the responders who made the ultimate sacrifice.
“I'm just happy to come out here and pay my respects to those that made the ultimate sacrifice,” said Robert Siwieck.
Park founder John Feal was a first responder at ground zero 25 years ago. He created the memorial to ensure the responders who died on 9/11, as well as those who later became sick and died, would not be forgotten.
“We're never going to forget those we continue to lose. We're never going to forget those that were lost,” Feal said during the ceremony.
Feal said the memorial is something tangible that future generations can visit and use to remember the men and women who responded after the attacks.
“I get to leave behind this park. It's something tangible that people can come and touch,” Feal said. “One day I do feel I will be on that wall due to 9/11-related illnesses, but today was about compassion, empathy, love and humanity.”
The ceremony comes as the nation prepares to mark 25 years since the Sept. 11 attacks.
