From ABC7 New York · · 1m 20s
Staten Island reads 300 names, 25 years on
At a waterfront memorial pointed straight at where the towers stood, families marked 25 years without them.
In brief
At a waterfront memorial pointed straight at where the towers stood, families marked 25 years without them. Grief here is local and specific: nearly 300 Staten Islanders, read aloud by name, in sight of the skyline they died in. Originally reported by ABC7 New York.
Roses at the waterfront
Families, elected officials and service members gathered at the Postcards Memorial in St. George on Friday, laying roses for nearly 300 Staten Islanders killed on Sept. 11.
A brother, Ladder 9
Karen Ciaccio came to remember someone she has not seen in 25 years. She named him the way families do, with his rank and his firehouse attached.
“My brother. Lieutenant Jeffrey Walz. FDNY Ladder 9. He was just a great guy.”
A borough of first responders
Staten Island has deep ties to firefighting and law enforcement, so the losses ran through the same families twice: as neighbors and as responders.
“Many crossed into the heart of the storm and did not return.”
The names, read aloud
Family members paid tribute as each of the nearly 300 names was read. U.S. Army Gen. Caroline Pogge attended with members of her command.
“It just is a constant reminder of what we're doing and why we are working in harm's way across the globe.”
Facing the empty skyline
The two giant postcards are positioned so anyone standing there looks across the harbor at the exact patch of Manhattan where the Twin Towers stood.
The city retraced its steps
Stephen Siller's family walked the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel again, 25 years after he ran it with 60 pounds of gear. Mayor Zohran Mamdani attended events across the city.
“They make this city proud in the way that they live up to those legacies.”
The big picture
Grief here is local and specific: nearly 300 Staten Islanders, read aloud by name, in sight of the skyline they died in.
