Local responders from the Town of Mamaroneck and the villages of Larchmont and Mamaroneck gather on Sept.11.
By JOHN BRANDI
On the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, local responders, town and village officials and the boy and girl scouts of Larchmont-Mamaroneck reminded the community that they would never forget the fallen at their annual memorial service.
The event drew roughly 50 residents of the Town and Village of Mamaroneck and the Village of Larchmont to Memorial Park, between Myrtle Boulevard and Murray Avenue, for the tri-municipal ceremony. It’s a way to mark and reflect on the day that saw attacks on Manhattan’s World Trade Center complex and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and an act that downed a plane in Shanksville, Penn.
Nearly 3,000 people died in the terrorist attacks, including 12 residents of the three municipalities, who are commemorated on a plaque, erected in 2002, on the Girl Scout Rock memorial. Three wreaths were placed in front of the rock by the girl scouts and fire and police personnel, as part of the ceremony.
The impetus for the memorial has always been the girl scouts of Larchmont-Mamaroneck, according to Mamaroneck Town Supervisor Nancy Seligson.
Local residents reflect while at Memorial Park. Photos/John Brandi
Some of the younger members of the nearly 500 girls, from kindergarten through twelfth grade, of the 50 troops in Larchmont-Mamaroneck attended the event and sang—with members of the boy scouts—a few bars of “America the Beautiful” to a somber crowd.
Pat Allen, a service member for the Larchmont-Mamaroneck Girl Scouts, said, since the roll of the girl scouts is so large, different girls are chosen each year to attend the ceremony. Allen said the girl scouts mission was to frame this national tragedy through a local community perspective.
The ceremony also featured the boy scouts who performed the Color Guard and then read the names of the 12 people from the local communities who lost their lives in the attack.
Meanwhile, Seligson said that, although the town leads the charge with organizing the ceremony, it’s supposed to be “all inclusive” with the neighboring villages.
“We just try to take the moment and the time to join with our first responders, remembering that horrible day, [and] thanking them for their service,” Seligson said. “[To] remember those that perish [and] attempt to help heal the community.”
Several elected officials from the state, county and local levels spoke, honing in on the importance of keeping vigilant with renewed threats of terrorism, but also the strength in community.
Village of Larchmont Mayor Anne McAndrews speaks in front of Girl Scout Rock in Memorial Park.
“We also come together to remember the heroic efforts of the emergency responders that day and to thank our community—our police departments, fire departments and ambulance corp—for their bravery, selflessness and hard work to protect our family, friends, neighbors and community on a daily basis,” Seligson said.
State Sen. George Latimer, of nearby Rye, called discussions on the geo-politics of terrorism legitimate, but it’s important to remember the people behind the names on monuments like Girl Scout Rock, and all over the nation.
“A person isn’t truly gone as long as there are people that remain alive that remember them and that is what today’s about,” Latimer said. “People we know, had conversations with, that were friends.”
State Assemblyman Steve Otis, the former Rye City mayor, echoed Seligson’s sentiments.
“What is important of our meeting here now is we have to come together to honor and remember [the dead] together as a community,” Otis said.
County Legislator Catherine Parker said local first responders keep us safe to this day, and she said that there hasn’t been a terrorist threat on U.S. territory since 9/11.
Village of Larchmont Mayor Anne McAndrews spoke of honoring those we lost by honoring our present commitments, our loyalty and by being good citizens.
CONTACT: johnb@hometwn.com