TMJ: Lisbon unveils 9/11 memorial with hundreds in attendance
LISBON - Lisbon is such a small town. But, it's unveiling of the 9/11 Memorial is drawing big crowds.
Many have come with somber hearts. Others, to show they stand united.
Even though Ground Zero is thousands of miles away, the unveiling of a steel beam from the World Trade Center brings a lot of emotion on this 10th Anniversary of 9/11.
"I was tearing up the whole time, tears running down my face. It was hard to handle this," Larry Grimmer says, while visiting the memorial.
"I think it's just amazing to be here. I'm so glad we can come," Terry Grimmer says. She was also visiting the memorial.
The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey made artifacts from the World Trade Center buildings available to communities for local memorials..
There are two world tower replicas. The centerpiece is the beam. It's about eight feet long and weighs nearly two tons. "It's really rough and bumpy," Ryan Hutton says about the memorial.
"It just shows the love of patriotism in this little community," US Senator Ron Johnson says.
Bill Mattson was proud to volunteer his time to build the memorial. "The sacrifice we made is pretty small compared to the larger sacrifice made by thousands," Mattson says. Some left flowers to honor those who lost their lives, including first responders. Justin Sayre says 9/11 changed his life.
“I was 16 at the time. 17 when I joined the fire department. That was a huge thing for me," Sayre says. Gacob Indestad was just six months old when the towers fell, now he's ten.
“We shouldn't let that happen to us ever again," Indestad says. By, not forgetting the victims of 9/11.
