Was up in Plymouth the other day and stumbled upon this 9/11 memorial that I had no idea existed. It's not near the downtown area where all the tourists go. At first I only gave this little park a quick glance, wondering why there was a rusted I-beam between the statues of the cop and fireman. Upon closer inspection I was quite blown away when I realized that it came from Ground Zero.
I remember that morning when my alarm went off at 6 AM and I turned on the TV to see the second plane hit the south tower. Worst. Day. Ever.
I was ready to head to work when this one happened.
And in my car when Flight 93 went down. I cried the whole way to work that morning, and spent most of the next couple of weeks in tears too.
To say that this memorial is moving would be an understatement. You can hear the number of people died in numerical form, which was 2,977. But to see every single name engraved on these pillars strikes a chord.
They are done alphabetically in each category from the first responders, all of the plane passengers and crew, each Tower, Pentagon and Flight 93. It was a warm day but I had chills and tears in my eyes.
Captain Gerald DeConto was a former resident of my hometown of Sandwich, and was only 44 when he died in the crash at the Pentagon. There is now an annual Memorial Scholarship Run/Walk in Sandwich, and the sports field/stadium at our old high school is named after him as well.
If you ever find yourself in Plymouth, do make it a point to visit this. It's located on South Spooner Street at the corner of Court Street. Well worth the detour from the downtown sites.
