Silent Tribute at Middletown WTC Memorial Gardens Honors 37 Locals Lost on 9/11

A silent tribute will be held to honor the 37 Middletown residents who died during the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

Members of the Middletown Township Committee along with representatives of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2179, American Legion Post 338 and American Legion Post 515 will lay wreaths at the Middletown World Trade Center Memorial Gardens on Wednesday, Sept. 11 at 8:46 a.m.

The time of the ceremony marks the time the first plane hit the first World Trade Center tower 12 years ago.

“The silent memorial is a fitting tribute to those fellow Americans we lost on that fateful day 12 years ago. It is imperative that we continue to mark this day now and in the future to ensure that we remain ever vigilant against the evil that took these lives so senselessly,” said Mayor Gerard Scharfenberger in a release.

During the ceremony, an American flag that was flown over the World Trade Center on the 10th anniversary will fly over the Memorial Gardens. At the same time, an American flag that was flown over the United States Capitol in memory of Middletown residents will fly at town hall.

A canopy of trees shades the Memorial Gardens, which features a landscaped path, benches and a personalized memorial for each of the residents that perished. The gardens are located next to the Middletown Arts Center at 36 Church Street and are open to the public daily from dusk to dawn.

A cablecast of Middletown’s memorial service held on the 10th anniversary of the attacks will air on the township’s cable channel through Sept. 11, 2013.  Residents can view the channel on Comcast Channel 20 and Verizon FiOS Channel 26.

Flag banners have been installed as a tribute to the September 11th victims. The flag banners are hanging on telephone poles along Kings Highway, Church Street and Middletown-Lincroft Road. The banners are sponsored by local businesses, organizations and individuals. The flag banner display became part of the township’s annual 9/11 commemoration in 2011. The project was spearheaded by Township Committeeman Anthony P. Fiore, who served as Mayor in 2011 and 2012.

Residents honored at the Memorial Gardens are as follows:

• Lorraine D. Antigua

• Jane S. Beatty

• Donna Bernaerts-Kearns

• Alfred J. Braca

• Ronald M. Breitweiser

• Patrick J. Buhse

• Stephen J. Cangialosi

• Swede Joseph Chevalier

• Dolores Marie Costa

• Edward Desimone III

• Michael Egan

• David Ferrugio

• Daniel J. Gallagher

• John M. Grazioso

• Felicia Hamilton

• Patrick A. Hoey

• Kathleen A. Hunt Casey

• Brendan Mark Lang

• Roseanne P. Lang

• Anna A. Laverty

• Michael Patrick McDonnell

• Peter T. Milano