Morris County to remember Sept. 11, 2001

Several Morris County towns are hosting 9/11 remembrance ceremonies during the next two weeks.

Morris Plains will hold its annual remembrance service at 10 a.m. Friday at 9-11 Memorial Park located at the intersection of Route 53 and Route 202 in the borough. Morris Plains schools, local emergency services, and Watnong VFW Post 3401 will be in attendance.

Randolph Memorial Post 7333, Veterans of Foreign Wars will hold a ceremony at 11 a.m. on Friday, to remember all who were lost 14 years ago and those who risked their lives to save others.

The county’s 14th annual memorial service will be held at 5 p.m. Sunday, at the Morris County September 11th Memorial on West Hanover Avenue in Parsippany.

“It is vitally important to gather each year on the anniversary of 9/11 to recall every single one of the nearly 3,000 people who were tragically lost to us on that day, including 64 of our Morris County residents,’’ Freeholder Director Kathy DeFillippo said. “Their families and friends should know that the lives of their loved ones will never be forgotten.’’

The walkway around the memorial features the names of the nearly 3,000 people who died in the Sept. 11 attacks, with special emphasis on the 64 Morris victims.

The Remembrance Service and Candlelight Vigil color guard march up West Hanover Avenue to the memorial by police, fire, rescue and emergency personnel from Morris County municipalities. The Morris County Freeholders said all area first responders are encouraged to attend.

The observance will include a special invocation, a lighting of candles, reading of the names of each of the Morris County victims, plus a 21-gun salute, and keynote remarks.

Elizabeth Schrier, the widow of the late Freeholder Jack Schrier, who was instrumental in getting Morris County’s 9/11 Memorial constructed, will carry the American flag during the ceremony.

On Saturday, Sept. 19, Roxbury will host a Day of Service to honor 9/11 heroes. The community is invited to assist in a food drive, clean the township’s parks, and more.

The Day of Service runs from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the public works building, 96 North Dell Avenue in Kenvil.

Go to www.september11roxbury.org for more information and to register.

On Sunday, Sept. 20, bicyclists will travel through Morristown National Historical Park, completing one of the final legs of the 9/11 National Memorial Trail.

The Memorial Trail is 1,100 miles long, linking the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the Flight 93 Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

The trail was formed a decade ago and serves as a tribute to all who died during the attacks. The New Jersey portion of the trail also includes Patriots’ Path, the Sussex Branch, and the Paulinskill Valley Trail.

Go to www.911trail.org for more information.

Know of another 9/11 event in Morris County? Email mizzo@GannettNJ.com and we’ll add it to the list.

Staff Writer Michael Izzo: 973-428-6636; mizzo@GannettNJ.com