New York club honors heroes in 9/11 anniversary remembrance

In the video above, members of the Rotary Club of New York recall how the club took action after the attacks on the World Trade Center ten years ago.

T he Rotary Club of New York will commemorate the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks with a remembrance ceremony on 12 September, honoring the victims as well as the first responders who heroically spent days afterward looking for survivors.

The tribute luncheon at 11:30 a.m. at the Harvard Club will feature speeches by a New York firefighter, individuals who lost loved ones, and a representative of New York Downtown Hospital, which received a new ambulance funded by club contributions in the aftermath of the attacks.

It also will include readings of condolence and support letters from Rotarians worldwide, a screening of two tribute videos, and a harp and piano rendition of "Amazing Grace."

"We are coming together to show compassion for the victims’ families, honor the heroes of 9/11, and thank contributors who gave our club the funds needed to give comfort and aid to our community," says Helen Reisler, chair of the club's 9/11 committee, who was club president during the time of the attacks. "I also want the event to serve as a reminder of the spirit our members had after the tragedy, and to continue that spirit moving forward."

Three members of the Rotary Club of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, will attend the event. After the attacks, the club contributed $100,000 to a 9/11 fund set up by the New York club. A federal building in Oklahoma City was bombed in 1995.

The New York club raised more than $1.4 million dollars after 9/11.

Artifacts from the tragedy will be on display during the luncheon, including a firefighter's helmet, a photo collage of all the firefighters who died, and images of club members helping out in the community in the days after the attack.

"Just like many New Yorkers, our members forged a powerful bond with each other and were willing to help in any way possible without a second thought," Reisler says. "I hope this remembrance will give our club a sense of achievement on what we accomplished."

Read Helen Reisler's recollections of the days immediately after 9/11 in the September issue of The Rotarian