Bay Ridge, Fort Hamilton hold 9/11 ceremonies

On the day before the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11attacks, the Fort Hamilton Army Garrison held its remembrance ceremony at 10:30 a.m. on the grassy knoll alongside the Community Club building. This building is one of the original structures still standing  which is part of the old fort, and it has been designated  a historic landmark. 

The solemn proceedings started with an invocation and reflection by Maj. Jonathan D. Bailey, the garrison chaplain, followed by the presentation of the colors carried by members of the military services – Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard and Space Force. Army Capt. Olufemi Fasan sang the national anthem.

Next came welcoming remarks by Col. Melissa Cantwell, the fort’s commander. Then came remarks by keynote speaker Maj. Gen. Kris Belanger, commanding general of the 99th Readiness Division with headquarters at Fort Dix, N.J. Like Cantwell, Belanger is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

A large wreath was placed in front of the Fort Hamilton monument by Cantwell and Belanger along with their respective command master sergeants. As they saluted facing the wreath, a rifle squad from the Empire Shield Joint Task Force fired a three-volley salute, and Sgt. First Class Daniel Haddock played “Taps.”

Col. David Bowles, the senior chaplain at the  U.S. Military Academy, gave the benediction.  The proceedings concluded with the singing of “God Bless America,” led by Capt. Fasan. Members of Gold Star families were also in attendance.

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On the American Veterans Memorial Pier at the foot of Bay Ridge Avenue, in the shadow of the 9/11 Monument “Brooklyn Remembers,” the annual Bay Ridge vigil hosted by State Sens. Andrew Gounardes and Iwen Chu and Councilman Justin Brannan, was held starting at 7 p.m.

First there were musical performances by Xaverian H.S., led by maestro and musical director Joseph Loposky, followed by the presentation of the colors by local Boy and Girl Scout troops and then the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance and the singing of the national anthem by young actress and singer Scarlette London Diviney. 

 A member of the Xaverian Pipe and Drum Corps played “Amazing Grace.” A joint Invocation was offered, as Father Brian P. Dowd of St. Patrick’s Church, Rabbi Royi Shaffin of the Bay Ridge Jewish Center and Imam Ahlmed Ali Uzir of Masjid Maryam participated.

In addition to the three hosts, speakers included NYPD Capt. Kristen Schafer, commander of the 68th Precinct; Col. Alexander Young, commander of the New York District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers based at Fort Hamilton; FDNY Chief Fire Marshal Daniel Flynn and Andrew McClure, representing the Tunnel to Towers Foundation. Sadly, there was no playing of “Taps” this year, an important tradition at memorial tributes. Sen. Gounardes asked for a moment of silence.

The designation of the name American Veterans Memorial Pier was originally proposed by Bay Ridge resident Howie Dunn, a World War II US Navy veteran and a past Kings County commander of the American Legion. The 25-foot high bronze sculpture on the pier was designed to symbolically resemble a 19th century fireman’s speaking trumpet. The inscription on the base reads: “Brooklyn Remembers for those lost on September 11, 2001.”