STATEN ISLAND, New York — Signs of patriotism and remembrance surrounded a Staten Island gathering Wednesday as FDNY families, active firefighters and retirees commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks and paid tribute to the lives lost that day and in the years to follow.<\/p>\n
A New York City fireboat delivered a water salute, while two ladder trucks parked outside the Staten Island FerryHawks baseball stadium held a large American flag above the street.<\/p>\n
Along a fence outside the stadium, flags were tied to the names of firefighters who died in the Sept. 11 attacks or from illnesses linked to their service in the years since.<\/p>\n
For Mia Welsh, one of those names belonged to her father, Robert Welsh III, who died in August 2023 from 9\/11-related glioblastoma.<\/p>\n
“I try to want to be half the person he was. Obviously, it’s a hard role to fill,” Welsh said.<\/p>\n
Welsh said her father was at Ground Zero after the attacks. Her mother was supposed to be at the World Trade Center that day.<\/p>\n
“My mom actually worked in the World Trade Center. She worked in the South Tower. She was late to work that day,” Welsh said.<\/p>\n
Despite the loss, Welsh said she focuses on her pride in her father’s service.<\/p>\n
“I try not to think about it as being sad because I’m proud that I have a father that gave his life saving other people,” she said.<\/p>\n
Many attending the memorial service carried their own stories of sacrifice.<\/p>\n
Thomas Glenn Smith Jr. said his father, Thomas Glenn Smith Sr., served with FDNY’s 224, known as the Trench Dogs, in Brooklyn Heights.<\/p>\n
“My father was in 224, the Trench Dogs, in Brooklyn Heights,” Smith said.<\/p>\n
Recalling his father’s account of Sept. 11, Smith said, “From where he was on Hicks Street, they had to drive through the Battery Tunnel, he said he had a lot of fear.”<\/p>\n
Smith’s father died in March from 9\/11-related lung cancer.<\/p>\n
“It’s very hard. I try not to get emotional all the time, but I do have a lot of pride,” Smith said.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of FDNY family members joined hundreds of active and retired firefighters at the ceremony honoring those lost in the attacks and those who later died from illnesses connected to their response and recovery efforts.<\/p>\n
Fire Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore addressed the crowd, acknowledging the continuing toll on FDNY families.<\/p>\n
“I cannot pretend to know your pain, first in losing so many in a single day and then continuing to lose our people to illness in the years since,” Bonsignore said. “There are no words that can make the burden any lighter.”<\/p>\n
The ceremony concluded with a pledge to never forget those who died on Sept. 11 and those lost in the years that followed.<\/p>\n
Attendees also received commemorative books containing messages from the mayor, the governor and the president.<\/p>\n
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