Both Madison and New York firefighters speaking at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum opening ceremony on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. said the day was remarkably similar to the serene morning of Sept. 11, 2001, until the first plane hit. They warned the small crowd of attendees, mostly media personnel and elementary and high school students from the Madison area, not to become complacent again.
Those in attendance were then asked to view a photo gallery and short film, and sign a steel beam that will be used in the building of the memorial at Ground Zero, which began construction in March 2006 and has raised $325 million of its $350 million goal.
The ceremony opened with "God Bless America," performed by fifth and sixth graders from St. James Catholic School. Madison Assistant Fire Chief James Keiken and Professional Firefighters of Wisconsin President Rick Gale spoke on the bravery of Wisconsin firefighters, Red Cross members and volunteers.
Also present was Lee Ielphi, a former New York firefighter who spent three months sorting through the debris of the World Trade Center to find the body of his son Jonathon, a firefighter and first responder.
"This was an attack on Madison, Wis., on our freedom to worship, our dress and our lifestyles," Ielphi said. "When I walked the street [in front of the towers], I was walking this street here."
Ielphi recounted the events he experienced Sept. 11, including the common belief at first that the first plane "went awry and struck the tower by mistake."
After his son was called to Ground Zero and Ielphi saw the devastation there, Ielphi said he knew Jonathon was not coming back.
When he got the call that his son’s body was found, one of only 70 intact, Ielphi said in his speech he was torn between wanting and not wanting to be there.
Ielphi was given his son in a body bag.
"[I] had to feel my son from his toes to his head," Ielphi said. "We picked up Jonathon, and brought him home and put him to bed where he belonged."
Member of the museum board, John Cahill, also spoke at the ceremony, asking the audience to "contribute to history" in signing the beam and donating to the project.
"People ask, ‘Why sign the beam?’ This beam will rise out of a 70-foot hole [and show] we will not give in to [terrorists’] demands," Cahill said.
In an interview with The Badger Herald, Ielphi said he thought the event and tour was important to educate the public and future generations.
"It will show what people had to do that day — dozens upon dozens upon dozens of people had to make the commitment that day to jump, from 100 stories up, to end it," Ielphi said. "If we don’t convey it that way, that’s not right. We can’t sugarcoat that horribleness of the day."
Ielphi also said it is important not to forget that in February 1993, the same "radical Muslim group" tried to destroy the World Trade Center towers.
"I have many Muslim friends — those are true Muslims," Ielphi said. "These people are hiding behind this religion, and they are dragging this religion into the gutter."
Ielphi said overall the event went "exceptionally well," but noted the low student turnout.
"[Remembering] the worst disaster in our nation’s history, you should have a number of people — you should have people from the colleges come out," Ielphi said. "Unless the young folks find a way to stop this hatred, that history will repeat itself."
