By jennifer dome
Staff Writer
VERONICA YANKOWSKI Workers complete a memorial at the Monroe Township Sept. 11 Memorial Park, Prospect Plains Road.
A year has passed. While the nation has worked hard to overcome the devastating blow dealt its people on Sept. 11, 2001, Americans have also had to contemplate just how they will commemorate the infamous date in history and honor its victims.
Leaders at all levels of government have been compelled to seek special ways of recognizing the day’s events, of capturing the importance of the tragedy with a vigil and in many cases a monument dedicated to the thousands of people killed that morning.
Ideas for these memorials range from strong, proud statues of stone to tranquil, beautiful gardens and walkways.
In the communities covered by Greater Media Newspapers, some memorials have already been unveiled, while others are still being designed. These memorials honor people who were lost from that community, emergency service personnel whose lives were sacrificed, or the general population of the United States affected by the tragedy.
ALEXANDER AGOR The question of what to do at Ground Zero — now clean of debris — is a topic of public debate.
In Middlesex County, where 57 residents lost their lives in the attacks, the county Board of Freeholders has decided to build a monument for all victims of terrorism at the Raritan Bay Waterfront Park, Sayreville, which has a view of lower Manhattan. The freeholders have decided to involve young people in designing the memorial by holding a contest among high school students. The designs will be submitted to the county by Sept. 25 and a winning design will be announced on Oct. 17, according to Freeholder Director David B. Crabiel.
The freeholders have set aside $75,000 for the memorial and, according to Crabiel, more funds from the 2003 budget will be allocated if necessary.
Sayreville, in fact, will eventually have two memorials, as borough officials are considering building one of their own.
Dozens of other communities in Middlesex County — including Old Bridge, East Brunswick, Monroe, South River, North Brunswick and South Brunswick — and many in Monmouth and Ocean counties are also planning a tribute to Sept. 11.
JERRY WOLKOWITZ Firefighters in Sayreville hold a sign honoring emergency service workers who perished at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001. The firefighters attended a ceremony at Borough Hall on Main Street Wednesday.
One man, Blaise Batko, a sculptor who grew up in South River and now lives in Hamilton, has been charged with designing many of these memorials. He said it has been a challenge. Each memorial, he said, has to be unique, yet comparable in its statement.
Among the more elaborate designs is the $280,000 Monroe Township Memorial Park at the intersection of Prospect Plains and Half Acre roads. It features a pentagon-shaped walkway with twin black panels symbolizing the shadows of the World Trade Center, along with eight black granite panels resembling the New York skyline and inscribed with the names of local victims — all set amid 63 native trees, walking paths and a gazebo.
Monroe officials will unveil the monument, designed by Batko, Sept. 14.
Batko’s East Brunswick memorial was dedicated at the municipal complex on Sept. 11. It features two black granite columns, each 7 feet tall and 1 foot wide. The bottom portion of each column has an American flag sandblasted onto it to look as though it is wrapped around the column. Names of the East Brunswick residents killed in the attack are inscribed on the upper parts of the column, Batko said. The memorial was built with donations from local businesses.
Batko said he met with families of Sept. 11 victims while designing the projects. He said this situation is very different from his usual work since the event he is drawing inspiration from is so near in time. When working on a veterans memorial, for example, the events and their place in history are more a part of the past than the present.
"I’m very flattered because it’s important to get it right," Batko said about the municipalities enlisting his services to build the memorials.
While Old Bridge has already decided to work with Batko to build a memorial, township officials have not yet decided what to build and where. Mayor Barbara Cannon has said she hopes the monument will be paid for through fund-raising efforts.