The 9/11 Memorial at ground zero was opened to the public a year ago and we were privileged to be given a tour of the beautiful pools and park by a close friend of the family, Vinny, a former firefighter who escaped with his life on that fateful day some eleven years ago. It was a very moving experience, greatly amplified by the perspective of someone who grew up with and worked alongside many of the victims, who witnessed people jumping to their deaths to escape the inferno, who narrowly escaped the collapsing towers himself, who toiled through unimaginable conditions to search for survivors in the days that followed and who played Taps on the bugle at many of the funerals of his fallen brothers. This is a day I will not soon forget and am so thankful to Vinny for sharing his story with us. His account of the day and details of the tragedy are now burned into my consciousness as vividly as the images I witnessed on the day of the attack.

Our group which included my mother, Maruja, Bob, Kyle, Maya, Jenaine, Vinny and I next toured the Trinity Church and Churchyard, located at Wall Street and Broadway where Elizabeth Coddington, a relative of Bob’s is entombed. She shares her resting place with many historical figures including Alexander Hamilton (a founding father), William Bradford (Plymouth governor), Franklin Wharton (third Commandant of the United States Marine Corps), Robert Fulton (inventor of the steamboat), Captain James Lawrence (commander of the USS Chesapeake during the War of 1812) and Albert Gallatin (the longest-serving United States Secretary of the Treasury).

After enjoying lunch at a phenomenal Indian restaurant (thanks to Jeanine’s keen sense for good food) our family hopped the subway for Times Square while the older folks returned to Douglaston. It was the first time visiting for Kyle and we all enjoyed taking in the chaos at the heart of NYC.

Bob treated us to dinner at the historic Douglaston Club of which he is a member and former Commodore of the Douglaston Yacht Squadron which is headquartered there. The meal was outstanding and capped a day steeped in history and fine dining.