Des Plaines 9/11 memorial getting ready for anniversary

Des Plaines’ 9/11 Memorial, to be unveiled on the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, is starting to take shape thanks to the efforts of many volunteers, city officials said.

The memorial will feature a 114-pound steel girder, 33 inches high and 11 inches deep and wide, that was among the supports that held up the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City before they collapsed Sept. 11, 2001.

A total of 2,752 people were killed that day in the World Trade Center attacks, including 343 firefighters and 60 police officers from New York City and the Port Authority.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which maintains an archive of materials salvaged from the World Trade Center ruins, selected Des Plaines, and a few other area suburbs, out of more than 900,000 applicants to receive a piece of the towers.

Des Plaines officials are hopeful the memorial will be ready for unveiling during this year’s Sept. 11 remembrance ceremony, traditionally held in the area between the police department and city hall.

The ceremony will begin around 8 a.m.

The roughly 2,000-pound monument will be placed between the two flagpoles in front of Des Plaines city hall, 1420 Miner St., Fire Chief Alan Wax said.

Among the contributors for the project is the American Legion Post 36, which recently donated $250 to the fire department for the memorial’s development. The check will be used toward the cost of mounting the beam onto a granite slab, which was donated along with artwork engraving by the Peter Troost Monument Company.

“The development of the memorial has been a cooperative effort involving many individuals, agencies and businesses,” said Des Plaines Deputy Fire Chief Ron Eilken, the project’s coordinator.

Lurvey’s Landscape & Design donated the stone for the memorial; Renew Autobody clear-coated the beam; firefighter/paramedic Sam Foster welded the beam; Rebel’s Trophies donated a plaque; and the city’s public works department is pouring the concrete base for the monument.

“Other monetary donations, including one from the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2992, have also been received, and are very, very much appreciated,” Eilken said.

The public is encouraged to attend the memorial’s dedication and Sept. 11 remembrance ceremony, which involves emergency service personnel, veterans and local officials.