Merrick remembers, 16 years later

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As the sun set on the Merrick firefighters’ memorial, at the corner of Merrick Avenue and Sunrise Highway, on Monday, the community came together in a yearly remembrance of those who were lost on Sept. 11, 2001.

Merrick Fire Department volunteers held flags aloft in solemn memory of their fallen brothers, and department chiefs delivered brief remarks alongside a statue honoring firefighters, engraved with the words, “Never to be forgotten.”

“This was a mere glimpse at the sense of community Merrick’s volunteers and fellow townspeople have established, 16 years later,” said Merokean Dominique Procopio, who has several family members in the Merrick Fire Department. “Sept. 11 is a day not to mourn the deaths of these courageous men, but instead to celebrate the lives of our heroes.”