Remembering a day we can't forget

September 11 in Malverne and W. Hempstead

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Multiple ceremonies and events in Malverne and West Hempstead marked the 15th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, each of which evoked its own spirit of camaraderie, sadness, and recognition for those residents who lost their lives one of the most vicious attacks on U.S. soil.

In West Hempstead, members and friends of the Lakeview and West Hempstead Fire Departments and residents gathered at St. Thomas the Apostle Church for a mass honoring West Hempstead residents and Lakeview Fire Department Ex-Chief, Robert J. DeAngelis Jr. The Lakeview Fire Department held its annual breakfast and blood drive immediately after to honor DeAngelis, who was known for being a regular blood donor.

Later that day in Hall’s Pond Park, West Hempstead held its first commemoration ceremony at its newly-installed 9/11 memorial on the south side of the pond. The event had several speakers, including Rosalie Norton, president of the West Hempstead Community Support Association, Rabbi Art Vernon of the Congregation Shaaray Shalom, and Susan Ainbinder Carroll, mother of West Hempstead resident Kevin Colbert, who perished in Tower Two and worked for Keefe, Bruyette & Woods. “One of the most traumatic loses life can deal out to a mother is the loss of a son,” said Carroll. “His death means so much more than just the loss of a precious life. It represents a loss of future experiences and future hopes you can for him. A loss of a son changes your world forever.” Colbert, she said, turned 25 years old just two weeks prior to September 11, and was last seen on the 89 floor of the south tower. Two colleagues urged him to leave the building, but he was led to believe that the fire was in the north tower, and stayed where he was. “When I buried my son two months after 9/11, I thought it was a final farewell, and then the New York City Medical Examiner’s office called my house every few weeks notifying me of additional remains that had been identified,” said Carroll. “Fifteen years later, I’m still getting messages from them. Due to technology and DNA, we are still getting Kevin back, piece by piece.”

Carroll thanked her brother and sister-in-law, who organized fundraisers that have helped send West Hempstead high school students to college in her son’s memory.

A half an hour later in Malverne, the village held its annual candlelight vigil, “An Evening of Remembrance,” memorializing its four residents who perished in the attacks. The event, always well attended by many village departments and organizations, drew members of the village’s clergy, politicians and dozens of residents. “The events of that day most deeply affected the family and friends of those who died that day,” said Deputy Mayor Patricia Fitzpatrick. “Every one of those people , whether they were going to work that day or were the first responders who came to their aid are all heroes and deserve to be remembered. We must honor their memory and stand together with their loved ones, who have gone forward without them.”