9/11 Seven Years On…

WTC Tribute Lights

Originally uploaded by brandonj74

Ronald Keith Milstein, 54; Alejandro Castano, 35; John Doe, 59; Jane Doe, 52 (both names not released).

Know them? Probably not and neither do I. These four 9/11 World Trade Center victims’ remains were finally identified just this past April — almost seven years after the attack. I just wanted you to know that even now, more than 40% of the victim’s have yet to have their remains identified, leaving those families with only the WTC site — now a gaping construction pit — as the only place for them to gather to remember those lost on that day.

As I travel around the country, especially away from the big population centers of NY, Boston, D.C. and even L.A., it strikes me that those of us who live in the areas that were attacked are still hurting whereas most of the country has moved on.

And so, as we remember those who died on that day and (for some of us) as we continue to hear the screaming voices buried deep within our souls, let’s renew our resolve as a country to prevent this from happening again.

I originally planned to post this yesterday, on the 7th anniversary, but came to realize that this date still affects me more than I’d care to admit.

P.S. – As we dicsuss the billion$ in overruns in the planning and construction of a 9/11 memorial here in New York City, aren’t the two beams of light reaching towards heaven the ultimate memorial?