Victims of 9/11 remembered at vigil

Bay Ridge mourned the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks with the annual vigil at the American Veterans Memorial Pier.

“Our neighborhoods lost so many people on 9/11 – first responders, family members, friends, beloved members of our communities,” said State Senator Andrew Gounardes, who co-hosted the event with Councilmember Justin Brannan. “We were forever changed by that tragic event. Together, we reflect, we remember, we mourn. Together, we share in our collective grief. I will continue to carry on this important tradition for our communities so we can mark this tragedy as a community and never, ever forget.”

“We all lost someone that we knew that day,” said Brannan, “and we still talk about them because we miss them and we are angry that they were taken from this world. We carry on their legacy and do it for them.”

Brannan, who said more than 2,000 people have died of illnesses related to the attacks, drew parallels to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We were all changed in some undefinable and inexpressible way and have shared this traumatic experience together as New Yorkers and Americans,” he said. “It brought us closer together. Now as the city and the country have once again been struck by tragedy in the form of COVID, we find ourselves facing the same tests we did 19 years ago.”

Attendees included members of the 68th Precinct, Father Kevin Abels of Our Lady of Angels Church, Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, Imam Abdullah Salem, BRAVO Volunteer Ambulance, Bensonhurst Volunteer Ambulance, Brooklyn 10/11 CERT, Boy Scout Troops 13 and 715 and the Holy Cross Girl Scout Troop.

The event was held in partnership with NIA Community Services and NYC Parks. Gounardes also hosted a vigil in Marine Park.