By Michael Cavanaugh
A respectful silence lingered in the basement of the University Church on Thursday as members of the Fordham community trickled into the downstairs chapel. Students sitting in the dimmed light were honoring the lives of those who died 13 years ago.
Among the almost 3,000 victims, 39 men and women of Fordham University were lost on Sept. 11, 2001. A memorial service to honor their memory has been held each year since.
Despite the painful memories that surface near the anniversary of the most deadly terrorist attack that has occurred on U.S. soil, students attended the memorial service as a reminder that those who lost their lives remain in our hearts.
“This ceremony has just always been something that’s been special,” said John Leto, GSB ’14, GBA ‘15, who has attended the ceremony each year during his time at Fordham. “It will always be touching, and I’m glad that Fordham does something like this, because we did lose people that day and it really affected all of us in a great way.”
The touching service is the result of the combined efforts of the United Student Government (USG), Interfaith Council and Campus Ministry. The College Republicans were also supposed to play a role in the event before the threat of inclement weather pushed the event into the basement of the University Church.
“College Republicans aren’t directly involved with other 9/11 memorial events, but last year the procession left from our display, and the procession was poised to leave from our display again this year before the weather changed things,” said Ben Shull, FCRH ’16, president of the College Republicans.
The display is set up in front of McGinley Center each year: one American flag is placed into the grass for each of the 2,977 victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
They are arranged in such a way that they outline both the Pentagon and the Twin Towers.
The arrangement of these flags is a project of the Young America’s Foundation (YAF), according to Shull, and is set up by the College Republicans.
Despite this, Shull says that the display is meant to be “completely non-partisan,” and the intention is solely to memorialize the victims. The memorial event traditionally begins in front of McGinley Center at the site of this display, after which the procession continues to the memorial stone in the Finlay Gardens.
With the threat of rain this year, however, it began with an interfaith prayer service in the basement of the University Church, which, through a reflection on the events of Sept. 11, focused on praying for peace in the world. At the end of the prayer service, 39 long-stem yellow roses were placed on the altar beneath a spotlight — one rose for each member of the Fordham community lost on Sept. 11.
“It’s an opportunity for us to gather together as a community of diverse faiths and bear witness to the lives of those people that were lost — the 39 members of our Fordham University community and all the people we hold in our hearts,” said Conor O’Kane, associate director of Campus Ministry and director of interfaith ministry.
The service culminated in a procession led by a bagpipe honor guard to the 9/11 memorial stone in the Finlay Gardens. There, the 39 yellow roses were placed beneath the memorial stone.
Before the service came to a close, attendees were invited to join in a moment of silence in front of the stone.
Samuel Joseph, Photo Editor, contributed reporting.
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Michael Cavanaugh is the Assistant News Editor for The Fordham Ram.
