With the approach of the 15th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center, Port Washington will honor those who perished by participating in the Town of North Hempstead’s annual event.
The town will hold its annual 9/11 memorial service, honoring the 56 town residents who died, at 8 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 11, at Mary Jane Daives Green, located across from Town Hall on Plandome Road in Manhasset.
Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano will host a sunset memorial service at the county’s 9/11 Memorial in Eisenhower Park in East Meadow at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 8. The names of county residents who died in the attacks will be read by family members.
The Village of Manorhaven will hold a 9/11 remembrance at Village Hall at 33 Manorhaven Blvd. at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday.
“It is important to gather together to remember the fallen and reflect on the impact this tragic event had on our community and loved ones,” Mayor Jim Avena said.
Avena is a former president of Cantor Fitzgerald, whose headquarters were on floors 101 to 105 in the World Trade Center. Of the 960 Cantor Fitzgerald employees, 658 were killed.
“This was the worst attack against this country since Pearl Harbor. It’s important to keep this memory alive to honor those who died,” Avena said. “As a former president of Cantor Fitzgerald, a company losing more than 650 employees in the World Trade Center attack, I knew more than 250 employees. I attended approximately 48 memorial services and would have attended more if I could have.”
The village will hold the ceremony near its newly erected 9/11 plaque, which was designed and built by Kyle DiLeo, a Boy Scout working on his Citizen of the Community badge.
The plaque commemorates Port Washington residents who died on 9/11, especially Port Authority Police Officer Jose Rodrigues, who volunteered to retrieve oxygen tanks from the south tower and was killed when it collapsed.
After the Manorhaven ceremony, there will be an event at North Hempstead Beach Park at 6:30 p.m. at 175 West Shore Road during the Italian festival in Port Washington to honor those who died on 9/11, troops and first responders.
