Memories Overwhelm Mourners

It came off the Hudson River and blew dust from the World Trade Center's footprint -- visible for blocks around -- leaving in a smoky cloud the tens of thousands who came to witness Wednesday's memorial service.

The number of flags billowing in that wind was only matched by the number of police officers at the location. Some were off duty, there to mourn the lost. Others were on duty, cordoning off streets, handling bomb-sniffing police dogs or telling people to step lively.

For most people it was a day of glimpses.

Crowds were pushed behind police blockades, leaving a streetwide buffer zone around the crater where the towers once stood.

The viewing area was closed for security reasons, and only credentialed press personnel and victims' families were allowed down the long construction ramp that leads to the footprint of the towers.

The closest most got to the site of the towers were the New York skyline snow globes that street merchants were peddling beside "I Love New York" T-shirts, FDNY hats, and red, white and blue plastic roses.

So the throngs settled for snatches of the memorial service: the brief sight of the president's car as his motorcade passed or the reflections off nearby buildings.

But for some, that glimpse was all that was needed to bring back powerful memories.

Long Island native Frank Meehan didn't see inside the fence that marks the area where his nephew died last year. But Meehan, who sat across the street from the memorial Wednesday with his head buried in his arms, knows that place all too well.

"I came in here last year looking for him," he said. "I spent the first day and the first night right here in this area.

"We never did find him."

Meehan leaned his head on a police barricade while the names of the 3,000 dead were spoken. His nephew's last name began with "H" and was called about 10 a.m., but Meehan stayed until the final name was called out.

At 11:19 a.m., when the last name was spoken, the readers said in unison: "May God bless the victims. We love you all. May God bless America."

Meehan clapped, got up and headed back to Long Island.

"I prefer solemn memorials -- more personal ones," he said.

Bill Harrison, from Bay Shore, Long Island, said that even though he didn't lose anyone in the terrorist attacks, he still mourns the losses and felt obligated to stay for the entire reading of the nearly 3,000 names.

Then he went to Battery Park City to see the personal memorials families and friends had left for deceased loved ones, he said.

"The memorials are very touching," Harrison said. "These all seem like numbers until you actually see the individual memorials that the families did. That's what puts a face on this thing."

"A year has passed, and people are still crying," Harrison said, wiping tears from his own eyes. "I know I am."

Wednesday was the first time Lisa Crane of Los Angeles had been to the World Trade Center grave site. She and her husband, Greg, came to New York for their anniversary and viewed the memorial Tuesday.

Wednesday, Crane watched the large monitors in Times Square as President Bush gave a speech in which he said it is important for Americans to not forget those who died.

"We want to take the time to remember," Crane said. "I can't get over how amazing it was to see the remains."

New York Police Department Detective Don Miller said that despite the passage of time, he knows people won't forget the events that changed the United States forever.

A New York native, Miller said the fact that the site has been cleared out so quickly is an indication of the enduring altruistic spirit of Americans.

"To see the difference in the way the place has rejuvenated itself -- that feels good," Miller said.

He spoke of several occasions when that spirit has presented itself, including one that saved his life.

"We had an incident where we needed assistance during the rescue attempt and we were about to get in trouble ourselves," Miller said.

"The place was becoming unstable. Some guys that we didn't even know came and helped us out. They were from Alaska. I still don't know their names."

And Miller said he doesn't see that type of attitude changing.

"I still find people seem to take time now," Miller said. "I don't know if it was the New York attitude or the tragedy, but now, people take time out for each other."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.