As communities across Long Island prepare to commemorate 25 years since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the Baldwin Public Library will offer residents an opportunity to gather, reflect and remember.
The library will host “Meditation in Remembrance of 9/11” on Sept. 10 from 2 to 3 p.m. in its second-floor Community Room. The guided meditation will take place one day before the 25th anniversary of the attacks.
Led by Stacey Palmese, the program is intended to provide a quiet setting for residents to reflect on the lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001, and recognize the first responders, members of the armed forces and others whose lives were affected in the years that followed.
Rather than a traditional lecture or memorial ceremony, the program will use guided meditation to encourage participants to breathe deeply, quietly reflect and come together as a community.
The anniversary marks a quarter-century since hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan and the Pentagon outside Washington, D.C., while another plane, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed in Pennsylvania after passengers and crew members fought back against the hijackers.
Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the attacks, including hundreds of first responders. The anniversary carries particular significance on Long Island, where many communities lost residents who worked in and around the World Trade Center.
Registration for the meditation is ongoing.
The library had planned a second program exploring the history and lasting effects of the attacks. “Tragedies and Triumphs of 9/11/01 and the Changes to the United States” was scheduled for Sept. 2 but has been postponed.
Veteran and educator Rich Acritelli is slated to lead the lecture, which will examine Sept. 11, 2001, and the changes that followed the attacks. The library said it will announce a new date once one has been secured.
Together, the programs approach the anniversary from different perspectives, with one centered on remembrance and reflection and the other examining the attacks through a historical lens.
The Baldwin Public Library is at 2385 Grand Ave. For more information about the Sept. 10 meditation and registration, visit baldwinpl.org.
