68°
The monument is being dedicated by the borough's fire department and residents are invited to attend the 7 p.m. ceremony on Sunday, Sept. 11 at the entrance to the Zadroga Field Soccer Complex on Schuyler Avenue.
“This new monument is being dedicated to the First Responders as a tribute to those fire, police and EMS members who responded on Sept. 11, 2001, and in the days following, to work at Ground Zero and the Fresh Kills Landfill,” said Richard Hughes, Monument Committee Chairman, former Fire Chief and Borough Council President.
Several years ago a small piece of the World Trade Center steel was requested by the North Arlington Fire Department to create a monument; volunteers fulfilled the wish without hesitation sending a 13-foot-long section of beam.
After careful consideration of several locations, the fire department chose Schuyler Avenue at Zadroga Field for the monument’s site.
The location already has many existing commemorations at the site and is a frequent place people congregate to reflect:
- The 9/11 Tribute Fence
- The memory of North Arlington resident James Zadroga, a NYPD Officer who paid with his life for the many weeks of inhaling contaminates as he worked at Ground Zero.
- The Borough’s 9/11 Memorial adjacent to the soccer field in remembrance of residents killed in the terrorist attack.
- The spectacular view of the NYC skyline and Freedom Tower.
The design plans and specification work was donated, and the NAFD was faced with the challenge of funding the monument's creation.
Several avenues were pursued through the borough administration and Mayor and Council, but ultimately the Fire Department was determined to raise its own funds to create the monument as originally conceived and designed.
Several significant donors came forward in 2016 to fund the project, and work began in earnest to construct the 9/11 Monument just in time for its dedication on the 15th anniversary of the attack.
The North Arlington Fire Department invites residents, fellow First Responders, families who lost loved ones, and survivors of the 9/11 World Trade Center Attack to join them at the dedication ceremony.
It will be a time of reflection and remembrance, and a time of honoring the courage and dedication of those who responded, many of whom still selflessly serve the borough and continue to put their lives on the line daily to ensure the safety and welfare of family, friends, neighbors and the public at large.
Due to the anticipated large turnout, residents are asked to drive to the area and obey detour instructions. Uniformed officials will direct people to a parking location not far from the field.
People are asked to arrive early to afford traffic tie-ups.
There will be no seating available, nor space for chairs and blankets. The ceremony will be no more than an hour.
Borough officials thank people in advance for their anticipated cooperation.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Lyndhurst and receive free news updates.
