GROUNDBREAKING FOR MONMOUTH COUNTY SEPTEMBER 11 MEMORIAL

by Allan Dean

ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS,  NJ —  There will be a groundbreaking ceremony at Mt. Mitchill Scenic Overlook on Thursday, September 11, 2003 at 9:30 a.m. for the Monmouth County September 11th Memorial.

The Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders, the Monmouth County Board of Recreation Commissioners, and the Monmouth County September 11th Memorial Committee are creating a memorial to the 169 residents of the County who were killed in the September 11th terrorist attacks.

The 9/11 Memorial Committee includes volunteers from all over the County including friends and relatives of the victims.  Comprised also of architects, engineers, contractors and other professionals who have donated their time.  The group has been meeting since June of last year and have developed a design for the Memorial.

The entire Mt. Mitchill area will be reconfigured under a plan by David Hoder of Maser Engineering.  Parking and a playground will be about 6 feet below the monument, Parking will arch south of the Memorial.  Visitors will park and walk through an entryway that leads along a timeline path.  A chronology of 9/11 will be carved into paving stones on the walkway, and adjacent plaques will explain the corresponding event.  As visitors walk toward the monument, they can read the plaques interpreting the events and experience the time frame.

The monument will be located at the top of the hill.  A large circular plaza will have a map of Monmouth County carved in stone.  In the center will be a table with a dark shiny stone surface about 12 feet in diameter.  The names of the victims will be etched in the surface and grouped by towns. At the center will be a sculpture by Franco Minervini, of an eagle "ascending to a better world".   Clutched in the eagles talons will be an actual steel beam salvaged from the World Trade Center site.  The Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office donated the 5 foot steel beam which it received from the NYPD who made some materials available for use in memorials. 

Artist rendering of the Monmouth County 9-11 Memorial

"I wanted to get the symbol of freedom of America to take the physical beam and the souls of all those who perished and bring them up to heaven. I wanted to bring the souls and the physical aspect of the beam to a better world," explains Minervini.  The entire monument will stand 14-15 feet high.  The Monmouth County Park System's Mt. Mitchill Scenic Overlook is an apt location for the memorial.  With views of lower New York Harbor and the skyline, the area gets many visitors for its spectacular sunsets.

Atlantic Highlands Mayor Michael G. Harmon is a member of the Monmouth County Parks Commission.  In a letter sent to friends early this summer the Mayor explained that the 9/11 Committee is embarking on its fundraising efforts and needs to raise $850,000.  Some individuals and firms have donated a symbolic $911.  Tax exempt contributions can be made to Friends of the Parks - 911 Memorial, P.O. Box 686, Lincroft, NJ 07738.  Unless the donor wishes to remain anonymous, the names of those generous families, companies, schools, or organizations with donations of $911, or more, will be permanently recognized within the park.

Not everyone supports the County's efforts to erect the monument.  One veteran says he refuses to donate because the County has not placed even one monument to the Korean or Vietnam veterans.

Mayor Harmon said, "My wife, Andrea, and I are supporting the 9/11 Memorial, especially since the attack impacted so many of our friends and neighbors throughout Monmouth County.  We must remember those lost as well as the day all our lives changed forever."

Relatives of the victims urged the committee to keep the park a happy place.  They want a place that reflects the vibrant personalities of their loved ones. 

Mayor Harmon wrote, "As the sun sets, people often come to enjoy the spectacular reflections off the clouds, the water and New York City skyline.  With their great height, the World Trade Center Towers were last to display the setting sun's colors and lights.  In the future, people will gather to remember their loved ones, friends and neighbors in a park dedicated to their memory.

The committee hopes to complete the monument and dedicate the park on September 11, 2004

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