Politics & Government

County To Honor 9/11 Victims In Parsippany

Candlelight vigil scheduled to mark ninth anniversary of World Trade Center attacks.

You never forget.

That is what Frank Manniello, a volunteer with the Red Cross of Northern New Jersey for 27 years, says when asked about the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, and the ensuing chaos that unfolded.

"We were there from beginning to end, when the planes hit," said Manniello, the county supervisor for disaster and instructor training for CPR and first aid, operating out of the Morristown office. "Our building was open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Every volunteer and paid staff that came in was just there to help all those people that needed us and that's what the Red Cross does."

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Manniello, and many others, will be honoring the nearly 3,000 people that died nine years ago at 7 p.m. Saturday with a candlelight vigil at the Morris County September 11th Memorial on West Hanover Avenue in Parsippany. The annual event pays special emphasis to the 64 victims from Morris County, whose named are etched in plaques that are at the Memorial. The observance will include the reading aloud of the names of the Morris County victims, three of which were from Montville.

The keynote speaker at the observance will be Morris County Prosecutor Robert A. Bianchi and the ceremony will also feature musical selections from the Masterwork Chorus, of Morristown. The public is invited to attend the event.

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When word came that terrorists had flown planes into the World Trade Center, "we knew we would be busy, and we were busy forever," Manniello said.

As days passed and the gravity of the situation settled in, Manniello said the Red Cross was working not just on relief efforts at Ground Zero, but with the families affected by the tragedy, through financial and mental health support. "Whatever they needed, we gave them," he said.

Manniello said the outpouring of support from the public was enormous, with 171 volunteers joining the Red Cross within the first two weeks of the disaster.

Morristown Memorial Hospital had ambulances at the ready at Ground Zero for two weeks "until the rescue operation was changed to recovery," said Pam Garrettson, public relations director for the hospital. "Our emergency departments were prepared for an influx of patients but, given the nature of the attacks, unfortunately we didn't have victims to treat."

The Morristown Fire Department will be providing a uniform presence at the candlelight vigil, said Capt. Jon Prachthauser. "We need to continue to remember this," he said.

Manniello said he will never forget, especially since he was there, doing everything he could to help on that fateful day. "You never forget," he said. "We put our heart and souls out there.

"It was a heartbreaking day," Manniello said. "All our volunteer and paid staff gave everything. That's what the Red Cross does."

For more information on the candlelight vigil and remembrance ceremony, call the Morris County Public Information Office at 973-285-6015.

Montville will be holding its own ceremony at the Community Garden at 11 a.m. on Saturday, September 11.


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