Day of remembrance begins, marking six months since tragedy of Sept. 11

Posted 10:35AM on Monday 11th March 2002 ( 23 years ago )

NEW YORK - Six months to the minute after two hijacked planes slammed into the World Trade Center, mourners paused to remember the 2,830 victims who "would want us to lift up our heads very, very high," former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani said. His successor, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, introduced the moments marking the impacts of the planes -- at 8:46 a.m. into the north tower and 9:03 a.m. into the south tower. "The time between the first and second plane is just a brief moment in our lives," Bloomberg told a crowd of several hundred who gathered at Battery Park, just blocks from ground zero. "We have to go on and we will go on ... We cannot let our guard down ever again. We must remember." Prayers and a message from President Bush were read during the service, attended by many relatives of those who died in the attack. Philip Raimondi, 16, and Peter Raimondi, 12, who lost their father, Peter, read a poem. Giuliani called the attacks "the worst violation of America in our history." "And in the moments it was taking place ... I wondered, could we endure? Could we handle it? Could we get through it?" "Shortly after, during the first day, I realized that your loved ones gave us the example on which we would build," Giuliani said. "It's to them that we have to look for our inspiration and our sense of purpose. They would want us to lift up our heads very, very high." Six months ago, Gov. George Pataki said, "We saw the face of evil." "And yet Sept. 11 will also stand for our response, which was to respond to evil with good, to respond to terror with love," he added. At police precincts citywide, the names of the 23 officers killed were read aloud at 8:30 a.m. "It's not even about six months, or a year or five," former Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik said on CNN. "Every day you think something about that day." City officials also dedicated a temporary memorial to victims that uses a sculpture damaged in the Sept. 11 attack. "The Sphere," a steel and bronze sculpture that stood in the fountain of the trade center plaza, was gashed and partially crushed by falling debris. It was created in 1971 by artist Fritz Koenig and was dedicated as a monument to world peace through international trade. "The sphere may be damaged but our belief in the principles it represents has never been stronger," Bloomberg said. "The real memorial will be in our hearts," he said. Bloomberg said the globe probably would serve as a centerpiece for a permanent memorial. Lucy Hindle, whose niece, Lucy Fishman, 36, died in the south tower, was among those in the crowd. "It was very emotional because we haven't found her yet," Hindle said tearfully. "It seems like the longer it gets, the harder it gets." The day of remembrance was to end after dark with the ceremonial lighting of two beams aimed skyward from a spot near ground zero. The beams are meant to evoke the destroyed towers. The events are important reminders to the public, but they also bring back painful memories for people like Joseph Maurer, who lost his daughter, Jill Campbell, in the attack. Maurer said he and his family would stay away from the television as networks broadcast special shows to remember the attacks. "They're going to keep showing the buildings collapsing, and we're not really all that interested in seeing that part of it," Maurer said. Holli Silver, whose husband, David Silver, was killed in the attack, said she wasn't planning to attend any of the day's ceremonies. "Look at how we have to live our lives. Every morning you wake up and wonder if they'll find another (body) part that day," Silver said. "I don't want the world to forget, that's for sure, so if this means people will pay attention, that's fine. But as far as for me, six months is still a living hell." Maurer, a retired firefighter from Brooklyn who also lost a dozen firefighter friends in the trade center, said the family was considering going to ground zero for the lighting of the beams. The "Tribute in Light" will shine from a vacant lot next to the trade center complex and will consist of two searchlights sending 88 high-powered beams of light into the night sky. The light towers were created by two arts organizations and will be displayed until April 13. The estimated $10,000 worth of electricity is being donated by the Consolidated Edison power company. ------ On the Net: http://home.nyc.gov/portal/index.jsp?pageIDnyc--home

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