Walk with Joe returns to Battlefield State Park

MANALAPAN — Three of the thousands of people who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, will be remembered at the 14th annual Walk with Joe on Sept. 12.

Michele Cleary, a spokeswoman for the event, said the memorial 5-kilometer walk has been held every year since 2002. She said the event is dedicated to the memory of Patrick “Joe” Driscoll, Christopher Gray and Thomas McCann.

The Walk with Joe will be held at Monmouth Battlefield State Park, Route 33, Manalapan. A ceremony honoring the heroes of Sept. 11 will precede the 10 a.m. walk through the state park.

Driscoll was a passenger aboard United Airlines Flight 93 on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001. The passengers are remembered and honored for fighting back against the terrorists who were believed to be flying the hijacked plane toward a target in Washington, D.C.

Flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, Pa., following the passengers’ rebellion, killing all aboard.

Gray worked for Cantor Fitzgerald at the World Trade Center in New York City and was killed at that location, and McCann lost his life responding to the scene of the attacks while working for the Fire Department of New York.

According to a prior Greater Media Newspapers article, Driscoll resided in Manalapan for 40 years and was a member of the Yorktowne Club social organization in Manalapan. He was a youth sports coach in the community.

Gray was born and raised in Manalapan and became a foreign exchange trader at Cantor Fitzgerald.

McCann, of Manalapan, was a 23-year veteran of the FDNY. He was a member of Engine Company 65 and was among the first to respond to the World Trade Center on the morning of Sept. 11.

Cleary said all of the proceeds collected from the walk will be donated to local charities. For more information, visit the website www.walkwithjoe.com/