Mantua and Gloucester County hosted the annual Patriot Day Ceremony at Chestnut Branch Park’s Circle of Remembrance last week, on the anniversary of 9/11.
Dozens turned out to pay their respects to those who were lost that day, when terrorists comandeered four planes to attack the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and were headed to other sites in Washington, D.C., before being overtaken by passengers on the last flight and forced to land in a Pennsylvania field. Nearly 3,000 Americans died.
Among those at the Mantua memorial were township committeemen and state and county legislators and first responders and military veterans from the nearby township VFW.
“On this day, 23 years ago, our nation faced an unimaginable tragedy,” said county Commissioner Frank DiMarco. “Thousands of innocent lives were lost and countless families were forever changed.
“We’ve come together not only for those who perished, but to recognize the courage shown by our first responders, the firefighters, the police officers, paramedics and military personnel who risked their lives and displayed remarkable bravery that day and the days that followed.”
Situated in the center of the Circle of Remembrance is a broken I-beam from the World Trade Cente wreckage. Just a short walk away is a piece of limestone from the Pentagon and soil from the Shanksville, Pennsylvania, crash site.
The circle also memorializes three county residents who lost their lives on 9/11: John Rodak of Mantua, Perry Thompson of Monroe Township and Nick Brandemarti of West Deptford. Their families were seated there during the ceremony.
Vincent Primavera, husband of one of Rodak’s surviving children, Chelsea, gave a speech that addressed elementary-school and Clearview High School students in attendance. The latter’s choir ensemble and marching band performed.
“Imagine a day as beautiful as today,” Primavera recalled. “You go to school … and then something happens. And you get an announcement over the PA speaker that says the World Trade Center was attacked.
“You come home to see fiery images, scared to death of what’s going to happen,” he added. “You’ve heard of Pearl Harbor, you’ve heard of World War II, you’ve heard of air raids, you’ve heard of the Cold War. But you’re scared. Now imagine you’re the wife or the father or mother of someone working in that building.
“That’s what 9/11 truly was.”
Despite the chaos and carnage of that day, the Patriot Day Ceremony included a reminder of how close divided Americans can be during a national tragedy.
“Now the one beautiful thing that ended up happening, and the silver lining from that day, is that we unified as a nation,” Primavera noted. “Sept. 12 (2001) was probably one of the closest this nation had been in probably 50 to 60 years prior. It was a wonderful thing that happened.”
A bell situated in the Circle of Remembrance rang four times during the ceremony to mark the four times the hijacked planes struck. It is silent every day but 9/11.
