People of Valley Stream reflect on the anniversary of 9/11 tragedy

On Sunday, elected officials, veterans and residents will gather at the village’s annual memorial ceremony at Arthur J. Hendrickson Park to mark 15 years since the deadliest terrorist attack in U.S. history.

Five years ago, the park added a memorial site dedicated to the attacks, with a steel beam from the destroyed World Trade Center positioned on two cement columns that point toward the new 1 World Trade Center. Last year, the village acquired two saplings that grew out of the charred trunk of a Callery pear tree that was uncovered under the rubble of the twin towers.

“We didn’t plan on adding things,” Mayor Ed Fare said, but when the opportunity arose to commemorate the victims of the attacks, he said, the board felt it was appropriate.

The tree from which the saplings originated was christened the “Survivor Tree” and rehabilitated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. It generated about 400 saplings, and was returned to the site in 2010.

The village applied for and received one of the saplings, and the Valley Stream Fire Department re-ceived two. It donated one to the village, and planted the other in front of the Engine 3 firehouse, on Cochran Place, in memory of Peter Martin, a former resident and volunteer with the department and an FDNY firefighter who died on Sept. 11, 2001.

“The residents of our village are very proud of our monument …,” Fare said. “Aside from ground zero, I think we have the best one, because we incorporate the World Trade Center, Shanksville, Pa., and the Pentagon.”

The monument — which was designed collaboratively by village workers — features two cement columns that are small-scale representations of the twin towers, a brass embossing of the number 93, for United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed into a field in Shanksville, Pa., and a pentagonal base, emulating the Pentagon.

“It’s not just a Valley Stream memorial,” Fare said. “We try to be very global with it.”

One firefighter’s perspective

Ahead of the 15th anniversary of 9/11, VSFD Chief James Ervolino said he thought the bravery of today’s first responders remained undiminished. “When it comes to job duties, if that building was burning tomorrow, they’d do the exact same thing to put that fire out,” he said.

Ervolino, who has served concurrently with the New York City Fire Department since 2004, said that many of his friends in uniform don’t often talk about their experiences that day.

He recalled that on the evening of Sept. 11, 2001, VSFD members were asked to cover for firefighters in Jamaica, Queens, who had reported to Lower Manhattan to provide assistance. Ervolino was a college student at the time.

“At that point, we didn’t know what we were going to do,” Ervolino said. “We didn’t know if we were going in to the Trade Center.”

According to Ervolino, uncertain conditions and the threat of danger are merely part of a firefighter’s job. “It’s our job,” he said. “It’s what we do.” Since 9/11, he noted, new advanced training techniques for first responders have been introduced, and there is a heightened awareness of terrorism.

“It’s a pretty solemn day, and I think — I gotta be honest with you — for anybody who was around that day, who can remember back that far, it’s always going to be a solemn day,” Ervolino said.

Discussing 9/11 in school

Though 9/11 has been in history textbooks for several years already, this year’s incoming freshmen class will be the first group of high school students who, for the most part, were not yet born at the time of the attacks.

According to Central High School District Superintendent Bill Heidenreich, district schools will pause to mark the event with an announcement over the public address system on Friday.

He credited younger students for their observance of the “sanctity of the day.” “I think that this generation views 9/11 the same way that, perhaps, my generation views Pearl Harbor,” he said. “We weren’t alive for it, but we know what happened.”

Local Sept. 11 memorial services

• Village of Valley Stream: The village is hosting its annual memorial service on Sunday at the 9/11 monument in Arthur J. Hendrickson Park at 6 p.m.
• Holy Name of Mary Church: A special blessing for first responders and their families will be held on Sunday at noon. The church is at 55 E. Jamaica Ave. The wearing of uniforms is welcome. Following the service, light refreshments will be served on the church lawn.
• Elmont Library: The library, at 700 Hempstead Turnpike in Elmont, is hosting a ceremony to unveil a steel beam to commemorate the 9/11 attacks on Sunday at 11 a.m.
• Town Park at Point Lookout: Officials and first responders are scheduled to gather at Point Lookout Beach at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday to mark the 15th anniversary of the attacks. The service is free and all are invited to attend. Limited seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Town Park Point Lookout is on Lido Boulevard at the end of the Loop Parkway.