Carpentersville seeks funds for firefighters, 9/11 memorial

It will take the entire village of Carpentersville to raise money for a memorial set to honor local firefighters and people who died in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

This week, the Carpentersville Fire Department released a rendering of the memorial and a cost estimate of the project.

The markup features a flagpole, two stone monuments displaying the words to the Fireman's Prayer and the Last Alarm poem that honors fallen firefighters, as well as brick pavers in the shape of a Maltese cross, the fire service logo. A stone monument will hold a brass fire helmet, and an L-shaped length of beam from the World Trade Center will pierce the monument. a plaque will dedicate the memorial to firefighters who served Carpentersville throughout the 96 years of the department's existence and to those people who lost their lives on Sept. 11.

“I think it'll be a real nice addition ... and a good reminder to everyone what 9/11 represents for our country and something we need to keep in our thoughts and prayers,” Village President Ed Ritter said.

The fire department hopes to dedicate the monument, outside Fire Station One, 213 Spring St., 10 years to the date of the tragedy.

Although Carpentersville has never lost a firefighter in the line of duty and none assisted in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, the event still hit home, Fire Chief John Schuldt said.

“We want to take this and just honor those that have served since 1915,” Schuldt said. “A lot of people have spent countless hours missing family events, missing graduations and birthdays, and we want to honor those, along with people who went to work on Sept. 11, never dreaming they would never return.”

But it will take $15,000 to get there.

The fire department has not planned any fundraisers thus far and hopes residents donate money — those contributions, rather than village funds, will pay for the memorial in its entirety. So far, the department has collected $322, and the department may let people inscribe messages on the brick pavers for a price.

Ideally, the department would prefer to have the bulk of the money by June so it can order those pieces that have to be custom made, like the helmet.

If you would like to make a donation, send it to: Carpentersville Fire Department, c/o Chief John Schuldt, 1200 L.W. Besinger Drive, Carpentersville, 60110. Please make checks out to the Carpentersville Fire Department.