Coast Guard veteran to play bagpipes at 9/11 memorial in Port Angeles today

Ricky McKenzie said he plans to mark the 15th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

PORT ANGELES — Today at noon, bagpipes will be played at the 9/11 monument at Francis Street Park.

Ricky McKenzie said he plans to mark the 15th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York; the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.; and the plane that went down in Shanksville, Pa.

“I do it because it should be done, to pay my respects so no one forgets and because there’s no official ceremony,” the Coast Guard veteran said.

The Francis Street Park memorial features a 9-foot I-beam recovered from Ground Zero in New York City.

Alan Barnard, chairman of the Clallam County Public Safety Tribute Committee, and Capt. Duke Moroz of the Port Angeles Fire Department toured the 1,450-pound I-beam throughout Clallam County — with stops in Port Angeles, Sequim, Clallam Bay, Neah Bay and Forks — before the 9/11 artifact became the centerpiece of a new memorial erected to honor local public-safety workers in 2011.

The memorial originated with two Port Angeles Coast Guardsmen: Samuel Allen and Andrew Moravec. They asked the Port Authority of New York/New Jersey for the piece in 2009, and delivery was sanctioned by the 9/11 Commission.

It was pulled from a building where 2,752 people died, including 343 New York City firefighters, 37 Port Authority police officers and 23 New York City police officers.

In 2012, the final piece was added to the monument, a bronze plaque created by Port Angeles Bob Stokes that reads:

“In memory of those who have fallen and with gratitude for those who serve, the citizens of Clallam County dedicate this monument to the brave men and women of public safety, September 11, 2001.

“Never forget September 11, 2001.”

A memorial featuring an 843-pound of sheet metal from the fallen World Trade Center was erected in 2015 at the the Sequim Civic Center Community Plaza, 152 W. Cedar St.

The artifact was retrieved in 2011 by Sequim Police Chief Bill Dickinson, Sgt. Darrell Nelson and Officer Randy Kellas, and was stored by the police department for four years until it was incorporated into the plaza design for the Civic Center.

It includes a dedication plaque at the base of the flag poles in the Community Plaza and recognizes each of the three attack sites impacted that day.

________

Reporter Jesse Major can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at jmajor@peninsuladailynews.com.

More in News

KEITH THORPE/PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
U.S. Air Force veteran Robert Reinking, left, receives a lapel pin from Holly Rowan, president of the Clallam County Veterans Association, during a Vietnam Veteran Commemorative Ceremony on Wednesday at the Northwest Veterans Resource Center in Port Angeles. A total of 22 Vietnam veterans and six surviving spouses of veterans were honored with pins and certificates in an event sponsored by the veterans association and the Michael Trebert Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
Veterans lauded in Port Angeles

U.S. Air Force veteran Robert Reinking, left, receives a lapel pin from… Continue reading

Danny G. Brewer
Active search suspended for Sequim man

The active search for a 73-year-old man reported missing south… Continue reading

Interest high in housing facility

Dawn View Court to open in April

Savanna Hoglund of Spokane takes a photo of her son, Lincoln Hoglund, 2, as hit sits on a wooden cougar sculpture in the Discovery Room on Tuesday at the Olympic National Park Visitor Center in Port Angeles. The center features a variety of displays that provide a sampling of what can be found within the park, as well as interactive exhibits for children. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Park exhibit

Savanna Hoglund of Spokane takes a photo of her son, Lincoln Hoglund,… Continue reading

Port Townsend City Council approves zoning changes

Reforms seek to increase housing density

A crew from Jefferson County Public Utility District works to replace an old pole with a new one on the corner of Scott and Lawrence streets on Monday in Port Townsend. (Steve Mullensky/for Peninsula Daily News)
Replacing a pole

A crew from Jefferson County Public Utility District works to replace an… Continue reading

Clallam County to provide PUD with funding

Rescue Plan dollars to aid water quality

Port of Port Townsend considers hiring second engineer for projects

Agency has $47M capital budget, faces ‘unprecedented’ volume

Most Read