Passing the 9/11 Torch to the Next Generation at Carl Schurz Park

25 yrs later - Passing the torch - A generation has come of age. Born post 9/11/2001. They didn’t bear witness. They weren’t there. So they can’t know. We were there. We know. And we won’t forget and neither can they. So we pass the torch and we must always remember together and carry the light forward.

In that spirit and tradition, the ‘25th Anniversary 9/11 Remembrance East Side Lighting the Way’ Ceremony was held in Carl Schurz Park and Co-Chaired by Howard Teich, Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright and Council Member Julie Menin. The Ceremony, under the leadership of Teich, is “A continuation of the East Side remembrance tradition begun in the first years after September 11th.” Neighbors and the community come together for “music, poetry and reflections honoring those we lost and the enduring strength of our community.”

The 25th anniversary ceremony brought together community partners that included the Carl Schurz Conservancy, Community Board 8, Greater New York Chamber of Commerce, Rev. Matthew Dayton-Welch, Assembly Member Alex Bores, NYPD, FDNY, Commandant David Menegon & the Knickerbocker Greys, Alida Camp, Assembly candidate Vanessa Aronson, Council Member Virginia Maloney, Russell M. Squire, Mansion Diner, UES Community Initiative (I’m a member as well as a Community Partner), Lukas Florczak, VP of UES Community Unity Initiative, Executive Board member of a veteran support organization, and Secretary of the Eleanor Roosevelt Independent Club. Lukas and Josh Malone, Gunnery Sgt., provided the ceremony’s Musical Interludes—Josh playing Trombone, Lukas playing a Melodica.

The hour-long ceremony, held on Sept 11th, began with the National Anthem/America rendition played. Introductory remarks from Assembly Member Seawright, Council Speaker Menin, Patrick McCluskey, and Valerie Mason the Chair of Community Board 8. There were Reflections by Rev. Matthew Dayton-Welch, Church of Epiphany, and a poem read by Jennifer Ratner. There was a Moment of Silence followed by remarks from Assembly Member and Micah Lasher, Alex Bores, Vanessa Aronson, and former Congressmember Carolyn Maloney, followed by a musical interlude as well as remarks by community leaders and attendees.

Wearing her signature 9/11 Zadroga firefight jacket, Maloney has been in the forefront of fighting for 9/11 survivors. Through her hard work and that of her staff and the 9/11 Committee, the James Zadroga 9/11 Health Compensation Bill is a federal law that provides medical care and compensation to people who became ill, injured, or died as a result of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and the recovery efforts that followed. Maloney stood beside Mayor Zohran Mamdani on the steps of City Hall. “He did what four mayors refused to do,” she said. “He released the files. I wrote a letter asking for the release. Health Watch brought a court case to release the files.” Never happened. Not until now. Maloney introduced and thanked Jim Clynes, the judge, she said, who “settled the case in favor of releasing them.”

Soon-to-be Congressmember Lasher’s remarks recalled his “fear and horror of that morning twenty-five years ago” and that he was “reminded, always, of something else too: the unity of this city. Our first responders running toward danger—that is New York. Neighbors reaching for neighbors—that is New York,” and “In my tradition,” he reflected, “we say that each life is an entire world. Today, we remember every world we lost that day, and in the days since. May their memory be for a blessing.”

Manhattan Miscellany—City & State’s 2026 Power List lists City Council speaker Julie Menin, who represents the UES as City Council District 5 rep, in the #1 slot. She’s described as having “positioned herself as Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s leading foil in government.“ The report noted, “After securing support for the speakership in November,” she “secured funding to expand the city’s Fair Fares and housing voucher programs in the city budget,” and she “continues to advocate for her district, advancing measures to revive year-round outdoor dining and ban horse carriages in Central Park. Now, Menin is demanding answers from City Hall over a Legionnaires’ outbreak on the Upper East Side.” She keeps fighting.