NEW YORK REMEMBERS: 25 YEARS LATER

NEW YORK REMEMBERS: 25 YEARS LATER
A quarter of a century has passed since the tragedy of September 11. But time has no power over memory as long as there are people alive who remember and tell the truth to future generations. For many years, my articles about the memorial events of the September 11 Family Group have been published in the largest American Russian-language newspaper, R. Reklama.
Along with the American Association of Disabled and Veterans of World War II, I was among the first visitors to the 9/11 Museum just a few days after its opening. Our tour guide was Valery Savinkin. Among the exhibits, I can't forget the video camera that captured the tragic footage of the plane crashing into the Twin Towers, sealing the death sentence for nearly three thousand people.
I'd like to recall Project Empowerment, where Igor Kazatsker served as the first Case Manager for a year and a half. He began each workday by opening a folder, each document beginning with a Death Certificate and a photograph of the deceased.
I've known members of the September 11 Family Group for many years. Year after year, we meet at memorial ceremonies, remembering the names and lives of those who have passed away—among them, many talented, educated people who could have lived on. We'd gather around the same table. People would come to my home and share intimate stories about loved ones killed by the terrorists on September 11, 2001.
Over the years, some people have passed away who themselves became part of the story of preserving memory. Jonathan Lider, Valery Savinkin, Felix Ksido, Nelly Braginskaya, and many parents whose hearts could not survive this horror and stress are no longer with us. But their legacy lives on.
Because memory is a relay race. One generation passes it on to the next. And as long as children are born into the families of the victims, as long as stories are told by parents, and photographs continue to be preserved in family albums, those we have lost remain a part of our lives. New York remembers the morning when the city's familiar rhythm was shattered by a terrible tragedy. It remembers the thousands of people who went to work and never returned home. They didn't know it would be their last time seeing sunlight. We also remember those who, in the most terrible moments, showed incredible courage and went into danger to save others.
This year, the September 11 Family Group's memorial ceremony took place a little earlier than September 11th. The reason is special: this year, Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, falls on that date.
The ceremony was hosted by the esteemed Ross Tisnovsky, Elena Belilovskaya's brother. Roman Hertzberg, father of the beautiful Marina Hertzberg, who died in the September 11th tragedy, addressed the assembled crowd. Regina Rakhlin, Marina's friend, remembered her tearfully. Monica Aiken-Murphy, Mikhail Aiken's wife, shared her memories. Honorary guests at the ceremony included New York State Assemblyman Alec Brooke-Krasny, City Councilman Inna Vernikova, Senator Stephen Chen, and other government and public figures.
Everyone came here with their own memories and pain. A whole generation has grown up in 25 years, but Americans understand that this day forever divided life into "before" and "after," and the word "terrorism" is heard more often than before.
We remember the talented people who worked in the World Trade Center towers. We remember those who found themselves there by chance. We remember the firefighters, police officers, doctors, rescuers, and volunteers who didn't ask who was in front of them, but simply went to save people. It's in moments like these that true human strength is revealed.
But the tragedy didn't end that day. It continued in hospitals, in families, in people's hearts. Many of those involved in the rescue efforts became ill years later from exposure to toxic dust. Many died. Thousands of families continued to live with the aftermath of that tragedy, as the stress and trauma they had endured devastated them.
Some people are forever left with an empty room, a photograph on the wall, and a last message or a last phone call in their memory.
I will never forget that day. For me, September 11th is a personal memory. I couldn't imagine that what I saw live on television, in the heart of Manhattan, could actually happen! How could such a monstrous crime, which would take thousands of lives and change America, even be possible? But it happened.
25 years later, a strong New York lives on. New buildings are being erected. New generations are growing up. The city is moving forward. We remember September 11, 2001, not for the sake of the past, but for the sake of the future.
So that our children and grandchildren know the value of human life and the price of courage. So that they never forget those who, on the most terrible day of their lives, thought not of themselves, but of others.
And so that decades from now, someone will say again: New York remembers. America remembers. And that's why I write: God bless America.
Marina Lagunova