Twenty-two years later

CRFD memorials secure remembrance of 9/11 for future generations

As the 22nd anniversary of 9/11 approaches, many residents may be surprised to know that the Town has two memorials dedicated to the courage and sacrifice displayed by our nation’s first responders on the day of the attack.

Both of these memorials are at eye level with visitors. They are meant to be interactive, and guests are encouraged to touch the steel.

“We want these monuments to serve as a place of respect and discussion for the next generation of people who were not yet born during 9/11 and a source of reflection for people who have their own personal stories of that day,” said Fire Chief Norris Croom.

Fire Station 151, 300 Perry St.

The monument at Station 151 in Downtown Castle Rock features a twisted piece of rusted steel from the World Trade Center mounted on a locally quarried rhyolite pedestal. The monument was created through a partnership. It was the Leadership Douglas County Class of 2017's community service contribution, and the Counterterrorism Education Learn Lab of Denver offered the steel piece to CRFD on loan. The steel's bent shape represents the profound destruction of 9/11, as noted by CRFD Training Division Chief Oren Bersagel-Briese.

Public Safety Training Facility — South Building, 304 Malibu St.

A second 9/11 monument, made from a 350-pound piece of World Trade Center steel, is located outside the Town's Public Safety Training Facility — South Building. CRFD's involvement in the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation’s 9/11 Memorial Stair Climbs program led to the creation of the monument. Extra steel was obtained by the stair climb members located in Erie, Pennsylvania, and shared with CRFD for this purpose.

“The location of this monument fits in well with the Public Safety Training Facility,” explained Bersagel-Briese.

“On 9/11, firefighters, EMS personnel and police officers died at Ground Zero while saving lives. It serves as an inspirational and motivational piece for the Town’s first responders while they train together.”

With a base molded into the shape of the Pentagon to symbolize the attacks, every piece of the monument holds meaning. The plaque at the base of the monument is engraved with “Artifact #10022.” According to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey records, this piece was recovered at Ground Zero and was part of a steel box column, likely from the lower level of the core structure of a World Trade Center tower.

'A rejuvenated sense of self-sacrifice'

Bersagel-Briese shared that this year, it is anticipated that the total number of firefighters who will have died from a 9/11-related illness, such as lung disease or blood cancer, will exceed the number of first responders who died on Sept. 11, 2001. “Here we are, almost 22 years later, and we’re still experiencing loss,” said Bersagel-Briese.

Thinking back on his 29-year career in the fire service, Bersagel-Briese highlighted that the fire and rescue service has always been regarded as a family, but that the 9/11 attacks galvanized this belief in a way that had never happened before. Everyone felt a different sense of duty and a deeper sense of what family meant.

“It’s a rejuvenated sense of self-sacrifice, and our hope is that this message is communicated through the two memorials that we have in Town,” he said.