The Sentinel remembers the 25 Rochester area residents lost in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, particularly Mendon native Brandon Buchanan and Pittsford Mendon graduate Todd Pelino.

“REMEMBERING OUR FALLEN” from New York

Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum First to unveil Memorial September 10, 2016

A very emotional traveling memorial, “Remembering Our Fallen” from New York is a reminder of the ultimate sacrifice made by 300 of our country’s Fallen who called New York home and died from wounds suffered in Iraq and Afghanistan (since 9-11-2001) while wearing our country’s uniform. The memorial includes military and personal photos of each Fallen to remind Americans of the cost of freedom, while helping to alleviate the greatest fear of their families: that they will be forgotten.

Dedication of “Remembering Our Fallen” from New York will be Saturday, September 10, 2016 with a 4 p.m. – Dedication Ceremony (Open to the Public). The featured speaker will be Col Matthew Bogdanos, USMCR. at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, New York City, NY. Unveiling Ceremony Sponsor is First Data. The memorial will be available to view on the Intrepid on September 10th and 11th from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

“We can never forget those who sacrificed everything for our freedom. The greatest fear of the Gold Star families is that their Fallen loved ones will be forgotten. We must remember these American Heroes and speak their names when we see their family members,” said Bill Williams, Vice President of Patriotic Productions, the memorial’s co-founder. “Most of our young men and women who joined the military in the past 15 years did so because 9/11/01 was a defining moment for them.”

New York’s Gold Star family members will be among the first to see this memorial and attend the Dedication Ceremony, including the family of New York’s most recent Fallen, TSgt Joseph “Superman” Lemm. The Intrepid Museum has offered to host the event made possible by First Data, the Sponsor of the Unveiling Ceremony. Three of New York’s Fallen were only 18 years old and 34 were 20 or younger. Three were age 50+, including Major General Harold Greene, KIA in an insider attack and one of the highest ranking officers to be killed; eight of New York’s Fallen are women. SSG Christian Engeldrum, a fireman with Ladder Co. 61, assisted on 9/11/01 and is included in the memorial; he was NYC’s first city employee to die in the war.

Anyone interested in hosting the exhibit may contact Patriotic Productions: 402-612-0210 or email: info@PatrioticProductions.org. Patriotic Productions has a mission of honoring our military. New York’s memorial is the 19th to be completed, representing 55% of our country’s Fallen in the following completed exhibits: AZ, CO, FL, GA, IA, KS, MO, ND, NE, NY, OK, SC, TX, WI. Our goal is to launch a national tour in 2017, including our country’s 6,852 Fallen.