Once again, in front of the precinct
On the morning of September 11, 2026, neighbors gathered with officers of the 13th Precinct and Emergency Service Truck 1 to mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the attacks.
The ceremony remembered those lost, including 13th Precinct officers Robert Fazio and Moira Smith, Brian McDonnell of Emergency Service Truck 1, and neighbors such as photographer Bill Biggart.
A bond formed through helping
In her letter after the ceremony, Arlene Harrison returned to the community’s response beginning on September 12, 2001: meals, shelter, supplies and support over the months that followed.
Those relationships continued after the command center closed. The Remembrance Garden, memorial concerts and vigils, and the E-MEN video project became different ways of caring for first responders and preserving the memories of those who died.
Keeping the record close
The anniversary letter also described the Block Association’s collection of photographs, clippings, letters and children’s drawings from the relief effort. Together with the memorial display at the precinct, they preserve both the scale of the response and the individual gestures behind it.
Read Arlene’s September 11 remarks (PDF)
Watch Arlene’s remarks on Facebook
Video by Marissa Quinn
Sources
Adapted from the Gramercy Park Block Association’s published September 14, 2026 letter, “Together We Remember: The 25th Anniversary at the 13th Precinct.” The accompanying ceremony photographs are by Ira Fox.