Five Towns to mark 25th anniversary of Sept. 11 attacks
Interfaith service in Hewlett and Cedarhurst memorial are planned for Sept. 11.
Twenty-five years after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, Five Towns communities have scheduled remembrances. According to the Nassau Herald, Father Chris Ballard of Trinity-St. John's Church in Hewlett will host an Interfaith Service of Remembrance and Peace at 9 a.m. on Sept. 11 in the church's new Chapel of Peace. The service will include representatives of the Abrahamic faiths and Hindu, Buddhist and Baha'i traditions, with prayers for those who died and for peace.
The Chapel of Peace, at 1138 Broadway in Woodmere, will be unveiled and dedicated Sept. 9. Ballard said the service will take a broader, contemplative approach rather than the traditional reading of victims' names and ringing of bells. "This is really remembering those who lost their lives on 9/11, but also we're mourning our sense of peace and we want something back," he said. The service is held with LI Faith, an interfaith coalition.
Cedarhurst will hold its annual memorial ceremony at 11 a.m. on Sept. 11 at Andrew J. Parise Park, moving inside Village Hall if it rains. JoMarie Capone, a former village clerk, said seven people from the Five Towns and surrounding communities were killed. The seven are Thomas Jurgens, 27; Neil Levin, 47; Bettina Browne-Radburn, 49; Joseph Rivelli Jr., 43; Kevin O'Rourke, 44; Howard Selwyn, 47; and Ira Zaslow, 55.
Mayor Benjamin Weinstock said the ceremony is personal for the community and will include local fire departments, the American Legion and the Lawrence school district. The Village of Lawrence is also preparing its annual commemoration with local first responders and community members expected to participate.