No. 3 Vol. 8
October 2021
Cedar Grove Students, Faculty, Community Remembers 9/11 20 Years Later
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By Lindsey Kelleher eptember 11, 2001. It’s a date that we as Americans all remember. As another anniversary passed by, this year the 20th anniversary, students, teachers, adults, and children all came together to remember the almost 3,000 lives that were lost that day when hijackers drove planes into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and crashed a plane in Shanksville, Pa. In Cedar Grove, students and faculty members from Cedar Grove High School installed American flags in the ground on the school’s premises in the days leading up to the 20-year anniversary to remember the lives lost on that fateful day. “This project teaches students about the tragedy and really gets them to understand what people went through that day,” said Cedar Grove High School Principal Dustin Bayer. The flag planting event was followed by a ceremony two days later – on 9/11 this year and was open to the public. Members of the Cedar Grove Police and Fire Departments were among the 150 people who attended the ceremony as well as members of the community. About 11 students spoke during the ceremony, giving a chronological timeline of what happened on that horrific day. A Cedar Grove resident spoke about his experience working on the 74th floor of the South Tower that day and how he made it home alive. “You could hear a pin drop when the
speaker told his story,” Bayer said. “The students really took a moment to understand the people whose lives were lost and how their families were impacted.” Near the school’s auditorium sits a monument made from a piece of one of the tower buildings that was donated to the town. Two trees are planted near the building to remember Jack Eichler and Norman Rossinow, the residents from Cedar Grove who died that day. Blue lights lit up the memorial during the ceremony this year, and lights in the pavers keep it lit all year long. “I wanted to learn more about Sept. 11 and the thousands of people who lost their lives that day since I wasn’t alive to experience or to have my own story about that tragic day,” said Cedar Grove High School senior and Cedar Grove Waves member Matthew Schoner. Schoner, now 17, joined Cedar Grove Waves when he was 11 because he saw it as an opportunity to feel more connected to the school and the families impacted. Joining Cedar Grove Waves also gave Schoner a better sense of that time in history through hands-on learning activities. Each year, he and other members of the group grid the front lawn of Cedar Grove High School and plant name markers and flags for each person who died during the tragedy. “Being a part of Cedar Grove Waves means coming together as a community to honor people who lost their lives that day. It means developing a sense of unity and car-
ing for the person next to you because you never know what tomorrow has to offer,” said Schoner. “It reminds us that every day is a blessing, and not to be taken for granted because you never know what can change instantly.” On Sept. 11 of this year (2021), the New Jersey State Police honored Bill “No Fear” Fearon, a state trooper and Cedar Grove resident who helped rescue people from the rubble that day. Fearon died in 2016 from an aggressive cancer that he developed from the smoke and fumes from the burning buildings on 9/11. “New Jersey State Police Lieutenant Wil-
liam G. Fearon #5147 is among those who sustained illnesses while assisting in the recovery efforts at Ground Zero and have made the ultimate sacrifice as a result of their service,” the State Police said in a Facebook post on its page on Sept. 11 of this year. The post was written to honor Fearon and State Police Staff Sergeant Bryan U. McCoy #3988 and State Trooper Robert E. Nagle #5493, two others who have died of illnesses they sustained on 9/11. Since Fearon’s death in 2016, his daughter Elyse has raised money for cancer research and has interned at the John Theurer Cancer Center, where her dad received chemotherapy.
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