PRINCETON: 9/11 Interfaith service held at university

By Philip Sean Curran, Staff Writer
Princeton University senior Arjun Dhillon was in the third grade the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, a boy from Wisconsin seeing the images of the flaming Twin Towers appear on a television.
Thirteen years later on the anniversary of the terrorist attacks, Mr. Dhillon could be found in front of a gathering of around 35 people Thursday during an interfaith remembrance service on campus.
The ceremony, starting promptly at noon, took place in the memorial garden dedicated to the 13 Princeton alumni killed that day. The gray, overcast day lent a somber note to a service that included song and prayer from five faith groups.
"We gather at this sacred site to remember the 13 Princetonians lost on that day, that embodied the Princeton motto as citizens, ‘Princeton in the nation’s service and in the service of all nations," said the Rev. Deborah K. Blanks of the office of religious life.
Mr. Dhillon prayed a Sikh prayer.
"When I was thinking about what to say, I was looking to not necessarily preach about any particular thing or tell people how they should feel in any given situation," he said afterward.
During the service, the names of the 13 alumni were read aloud, while a university employee used a wood mallet to ring the memorial bell that hangs in the garden. Fourteen candles placed on a table were lighted — one candle for each alumnus and one candle for all those killed on 9/11.
"This day is very personal for me," said Marni Blitz, the associate director of the Center for Jewish Life, who read a Jewish prayer. In her remarks, she mentioned by name a firefighter and a family friend who had perished.
Reflecting afterward on her memories of that day, Ms. Blitz remembered being home in her apartment in Great Neck, N.Y., in the morning with her baby daughter.
"My first thought was looking at her and saying, ‘The world’s different for you.’"
Margaret Miller, associate vice president for alumni affairs who participated in the service, said the garden was created as a quiet place where students, staff and alumni could come to sit and reflect.
"We thought that being right here in the heart of campus, right next to Nassau Hall, was fitting. It’s a really beautiful space. It’s very serene."
The 13 Princeton alumni killed on 9/11 and their class years are as follows:
William E. Caswell *75Robert L. Cruikshank ’58Robert J. Deraney ’80Christopher N. Ingrassia ’95Karen J. Klitzman ’84Catherine F. MacRae ’00Charles A. McCrann ’68Robert G. McIlvaine ’97Christopher D. Mello ’98Joshua A. Rosenthal *81John T. Schroeder ’92Jeffrey D. Wiener ’90Martin P. Wohlforth ’76