Greenwich Vows To 'Never Forget' On 22nd Anniversary Of 9/11

GREENWICH, CT — There was a somber mood at Cos Cob Park on Monday, as the Greenwich community gathered to mark the 22nd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks with a simple message: We will never forget.

A crowd of over 150 people —including numerous elected officials, first responders, and the Greenwich Police Honor Guard — came together in the parking lot of the park near the 9/11 memorial, which sits on a bluff overlooking the Long Island Sound and displays the 33 names of Greenwich residents who died in the attacks.

Cannons were fired to observe the time when each plane struck the Twin Towers, when the Pentagon was hit, when the towers fell, and when United Flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, Pa.

The names of each victim with Greenwich ties were read by state Rep. Stephen Meskers (D-150), accompanied by the ringing of a bell.

Col. Frank Kelly, 4th Legal Operations Detachment Commander in the U.S. Army Reserves (Ret.), and the brother of Greenwich Board of Education Chair Joe Kelly, served as the keynote speaker.

Frank Kelly recalled being in Manhattan on 9/11. His voice cracked with emotion.

"There still remains frustration and a stark memory of each second standing amongst the human rain, watching 343 contemporaries and friends climb to glory, feeling the ground lurch 110 times and tasting the ashes of incinerated friends in my mouth, feeling the cement dust of snow settle on my suit, seeing the asterisks of fabric and insulation floating around with bits of paper. I remember a deep and abject despair," he said.

"The perpetrators of this despicable act sought by outrageous violence against innocent, unsuspecting people to strike a mortal blow to freedom, to destroy democracy, to make us cower in fear, to defeat our engine of prosperity," he added. "The actual effect of that attack, while stinging, had the opposite result. America continued to do the benevolent things it does as the guiding light of liberty."

Gov. Ned Lamont, a Greenwich resident, spoke briefly and recounted his trek out of New York City back to the Greenwich train station on that day.

"All the ambulances were lined up, but there weren't that many injured. Too many died," Lamont said.

Lamont noted that the annual remembrance ceremony is important.

"Sometimes as tragedies like this go into the rearview mirror, we sometimes forget about all the things we have in common and sometimes go back to tribalism and the things that divide us," Lamont said. "That's why this ceremony is so important because it's a reminder that out of that tragedy, out of that hateful act, all that brought us together."

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), also a Greenwich resident, urged those in attendance to remember the first responders who ran towards danger, and the first responders who continue to serve today.

"Today we remember and we vow never to forget. In remembering and vowing never to forget, I think the best way to honor those memories is to work for the living and to make sure we never forget the men and women who serve us today," Blumenthal said. "Our firefighters, our first responders here in Greenwich, in the state, all around the country, men and women who honor the tradition and ethos that drove those men and women to run into burning buildings seeking to save the survivors."

Greenwich resident Wells Noonan lost her brother, Robert, on 9/11. Robert was a broker at Cantor Fitzgerald on the 105th floor of One World Trade Center.

Noonan helps organize the annual remembrance ceremony each year. She said she hopes people can forever remember not just those who died on 9/11, but those who continue to suffer from 9/11-related illnesses.

"It's a tough day. It's hard to get here and stand up here and face you all," Noonan said. "I want this to live on forever. I want us to never forget."

At the conclusion of the remarks, guests walked up a winding path to the tune of "Amazing Grace," which was played on the bagpipes by Greenwich police Capt. Jim Bonney.

White flowers were placed at the base of the 9/11 memorial.

Greenwich was scheduled to hold a second remembrance ceremony Monday night at the Glenville Volunteer Fire Company's 9/11 memorial.