Miracle 9/11 Banner at Ground Zero

Several weeks after the 9/11 attack, my brother John took me down to the family viewing area at Ground Zero.  John works with the Local  Union and had been searching for our younger brother James nonstop. As we worked our way deeper into the site, I was completely gripped by the incredible mass of destruction all around me. Dust covered recovery workers were fiercely digging and searching for loved ones. We moved slowly and very carefully.  Upon entering the safe viewing area built for family members, the ash covered eyes of a recovery worker looked up momentarily and met mine.

Not a word was uttered. We spoke through our tears and brokenness.

Standing in rows,  workers moved whatever debris they could, hoping to find people alive.  Among the thousands missing was our own brother James.  He was 26 years old and had just started working for the Local Union as an apprentice.  Watching the recovery effort, I cried and prayed from the depths of my soul asking God for James’ life. For a miracle that somehow, he would be found alive.

And in that prayer, I thanked God for all the recovery workers who were courageously digging and searching for the thousands taken from us without mercy.  Quietly, I made a promise to find a way to let the whole world know that for all of time, we would never forget our loved ones nor the courageous brave. Those who never gave up searching to recover them, the innocent who lay buried beneath the steel.

Through my prayers came the vision to raise a 9/11 banner of remembrance and gratitude.  By God’s grace, the September 11th Banner of Remembrance was placed over Ground Zero just a few months after the attack on our nation.  The message “Thank You for Never Giving Up.  We Will Never Forget Them.  We Will Never Forget You, Love WTC Families” was shared worldwide for more than five years.

How it came to be is in so many ways – a miracle – a testament to God’s loving grace that is always present.  Always with us – casting His light of hope in the midst of despair and darkness.

The 9/11 banner was driven by my family’s eternal love for James.

And fueled by his brother’s search to bring him home.  Day after day, John worked at Ground Zero, giving all he had to find him.

It has taken me seventeen years to share the story about how the miracle banner came to be.  It is shared in tribute to my brother John and all the 9/11 recovery workers – they represent the very best in our humanity.  We are as committed as ever to the remembrance of all those we lost on September 11, 2001.  We honor those who courageously and compassionately searched to bring them home.  Seventeen years later,  many of the men and women exposed to the 9/11 toxins have developed debilitating diseases or lost their own lives over the course of time.

Among those now battling kidney disease, is John.

May God bless James and all those we lost on 9/11

And remember always, those who gave their all to bring them home.