NJ Photographer Honors 9/11 Search And Rescue Dogs With 25th Anniversary Tribute

WEST ORANGE, NJ — Twenty-five years after the September 11 attacks, West Orange photographer Erica Deel is releasing a special commemorative edition of “Heroes Remembered,” a fine-art photograph honoring the search-and-rescue dogs who served in the aftermath of 9/11.

Deel first created Heroes Remembered in 2022 at the Essex County 9/11 Memorial at Eagle Rock Reservation in West Orange, photographing her own dog, Pinecone, gazing toward Eagle Rock’s bronze Search and Rescue Dog Statue with the Manhattan skyline beyond them.

Rather than portraying Pinecone as one of the working dogs, Deel envisioned him as a quiet observer—a present-day dog looking toward the memory of those who served before him.

“I wanted Pinecone to stand in for all of us—to simply look up at this dog who went where humans needed him most, and remember,” Deel said. “So many people know the stories of the first responders who ran toward danger that day. I wanted to create something that also asks us to remember the dogs who went beside them.”

Creating the original photograph required five visits to Eagle Rock before sunrise, with Deel repeatedly returning in search of the right combination of light, weather and atmosphere. During the successful session, Deel elevated Pinecone on a makeshift platform to position him beside the much larger statue and used a handmade jingle-bell toy to draw his attention upward.

Deel said that the Tribute in Light presented another challenge that July morning.

She first attempted to photograph the beams separately on location. When that didn't work, Deel recreated them using flashlights in her West Orange studio and composited them into the finished scene.

An earlier iteration of Heroes Remembered received Bronze in the 2023 International Pet Photography Awards.

In 2026, Deel returned to the photograph, refining the artwork for the 25th anniversary and creating a commemorative edition intended to turn remembrance into support for future search-and-rescue teams.

The 25th Anniversary Commemorative Edition will be available from Sept. 11 to Sept. 25, with 25 percent of net proceeds donated to the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation. After Sept. 25, Heroes Remembered will remain available as part of Deel’s fine-art collection, with 10 percent of net proceeds continuing to benefit the foundation. Learn more here.

• Related: Essex County Honors 9/11 Rescue Dogs With Bronze Statue

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