Volunteer New York! Calls on Residents to Provide Service for 9/11
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It’s difficult to find any good to have come out of the national catastrophe 23 years ago on September 11. But thousands of people in New York and millions more across the United States take a step back around the anniversary to try and rekindle the national unity felt in the days, weeks and months following the tragedy.
Locally, for the past 14 years, Volunteer New York! has heeded the calls by organizing its annual 9/11: Serve & Remember volunteer efforts. This Friday, Sept. 6 in New Rochelle and on Sept. 11 in White Plains there will be opportunities for residents throughout the lower Hudson Valley to participate and improve the lives of others.
On Friday, the volunteer organization has organized two shifts at Monroe College in New Rochelle to pack 50,000 meals. There are two time slots available, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 12:30 to 2 p.m., for participants to join.
Then next Wednesday, the County Center in White Plains will be the hub for seven different efforts with most starting at 11:30 a.m. and extending until 5:30 p.m. Volunteers can sign up to make blankets for hospitalized children, make cards for the troops, create laundry sachets, put together literacy kits, donate blood or learn CPR.
From 4 to 5:30 p.m. there will be a sandwich-making session that residents can try.
Volunteer New York! Executive Director Jeanette Gisbert said shortly after 9/11, families of victims proposed the idea to honor their lost loved ones by advocating that Sept. 11 be a national day of unity and service, which has gained steam throughout the nation in the 23 years since the attacks. The anniversary has become the largest day of volunteer service in the United States, with more than 30 million people participating each year, she said.
“Their goal was to annually rekindle the spirit of unity, service and shared humanity that rose in the U.S. and spread around the world following 9/11, and in doing so, created a permanent tribute to those lost,” Gisbert said.
For the 10th consecutive year, Robison Oil, this year’s lead sponsor, is involved in the event. They are joined by WMCHealth and Empire Casino.
Signing up and participating is one way to honor the memories of the nearly 3,000 people who died that day, including the hundreds of emergency responders, many of whom ran toward danger to sacrifice their lives in hopes of saving others.
“As the anniversary of 9/11 brings us together to remember those lost and the many selfless first-responders, we are proud to join Volunteer New York! in presenting this meaningful way to take action in remembrance,” said Westchester County Executive George Latimer. “In addition to the mobilization of hundreds of hours of service benefiting our local nonprofits, volunteering alongside our neighbors as part of this significant community event helps us to foster unity, empathy and bring our community closer together.”
County Legislator Margaret Cunzio (C-Mount Pleasant) said it also helps everyone, including the younger generation, to better understand what happened that day.
“But I also think it’s just as important that we take our actions and we do something good,” Cunzio said. “Having family-friendly volunteer activities, having activities that people can give back to the community, not only helps the community, but it also makes somebody realize how lucky we are to be here and how lucky we are to have the opportunity to volunteer.”
Gisbert added that volunteering also speaks to Americans’ “spirit of resilience.”
She said “9/11: Serve + Remember is an opportunity to pause and do good to make a difference, to connect with your community and to join others in honoring those lost, to remember the power of what we can do together.”
To learn more about 9/11: Serve + Remember, including signing up to volunteer, call 914-948-4452 or visit www.volunteernewyork.org.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
