How the 9/11 Memorial and Museum is keeping its promise to ‘never forget’ during the coronavirus crisis
The 9/11 Memorial and Museum is still keeping up with traditions amid closing due to the coronavirus pandemic. President and CEO of the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, Alice Greenwald, says even though the waterfalls have stopped running, it's still important to remember the people who lost their lives nearly 20 years ago.
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Almost 19 years ago, Americans made a promise to never forget those who lost their lives during the September 11 terrorist attacks. Although the 9/11 Memorial & Museum had to close its doors in March due to coronavirus stay-at-home orders, essential staff have remained on sight to continue the traditions that honor those who perished that day.
“We have a tradition at the memorial that we have been doing since 2013 of placing white roses into the names of victims around the memorial pools whose birthday falls on any given day,” Alice Greenwald, president and CEO of the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, told Fox News.
Greenwald said every day there are at least two flowers placed on top of a victim's name on the memorial outside the building.
The museum has transitioned other annual commemorations to be experienced in a virtual platform.
“We actually have a commemoration coming up on the 30th of May-- [which] we mark every year [for] the anniversary of the end of the nine months of recovery effort at Ground Zero,” Greenwald said. "This year is no different; they are creating a virtual commemoration."
Greenwald added that it's not just important to remember those who died, but those in the community who helped the city rebuild.
“Those recovery workers were the ones who allowed our city to reopen and rebuild 19 years ago,” she said.
Greenwald says the museum is looking toward the future while honoring the past and would like to open soon if it's safe.
"We are thinking right now that we will do more programming on the memorial plaza itself than we've done in the past because it may be safer to be outside,” Greenwald said.