The Daily Herald has an article describing a firefighter memorial being built by the Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Firefighters Association:
The Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Firefighters Association is building the memorial on the north end of Riverfront Park. The location is particularly significant because the old firehouse used to be across the street until about eight years ago, firefighter/paramedic Dan Teson said.
Construction started last week, right after agreements were approved by the village of Algonquin and the fire protection district, and is on track to be finished in time for a Sept. 11 dedication, Teson said.
The memorial will consist of a brick paver circle 40 feet in diameter with the World Trade Center steel beam in the middle, and landscaping all around it, Teson said.
The firefighters association got the beam, which weighs more than 5,000 pounds, as a donation from The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Teson said. He and two other firefighters flew to New York City in November to accept the donation, and were met there by one of the firefighters’ father, who drove his truck, Teson said. The foursome picked up the beam at a hangar outside LaGuardia Airport, and father and son drove it back to Illinois.
“It absolutely does have an effect on you, when you sit there and physically touch a piece of something that was a major part of our history, probably one of the worst days that we’ve ever had in the U.S. To be able to be part of something like that in a positive manner, and pay tribute to all the people who died that day, it’s very meaningful,” he said.
The complete article can be found HERE.
thanks Chris
