Crime & Safety

Fire Department, School Art Teachers Seek Community Assistance With 9/11 Memorial

The public is invited to contribute to the 9/11 Memorial at the Saline Farmers Market Saturday and Saline Community Fair Tuesday.

The and art department are asking for the public’s help in creating a public art memorial honoring the 343 rescue workers who died in the terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center in New York on Sept. 11, 2001.

The art project, called “Holding Heroes in Our Hearts — Never Forget 343,” is being created as the community recognizes the 10th anniversary of 9-11, during which 19 terrorists hijacked four commercial airplanes and killed 2,977 people in suicide attacks.

The memorial will feature the names of the 343 rescue workers killed during the attacks, and red and blue handprints of children. The final result will be a 4-by-7.5 foot memorial designed to look like the Flag.

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Saline Area Schools art teachers Laura Laatsch and Kevin McCown are among those who’ve worked on the project since being approached by Saline Fire Chief Craig Hoeft in the spring.

“Many of our elementary students weren’t even born yet when 9/11 took place. So this could be a gentle way to teach children about what took place that day. For those of us who do remember that day, we hope the public views this as a fitting way to honor the people who died trying to rescue people that day,” said Laatsch.

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The public is being invited to join in the creation of the memorial at two upcoming events.

From 8 a.m. to noon Saturday, at the Saline Farmers Market in the lot on South Ann Arbor Street, art teachers will ask people to contribute by printing the name of a deceased firefighter on the memorial.

From noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday, during family day at the Saline Community Fair, the teachers will ask youngsters to stamp red and blue handprints over the names on the memorial. The fair takes place at the Washtenaw Farm Council Grounds, 5055 Ann Arbor-Saline Rd. The art project takes place in the Saline Area Schools Merchants Barn.

As part of the 9/11 anniversary commemoration, the fire department will also showcase some of the essays written by Saline students for a memorial held in 2002.

“That first memorial service we had to make the one year anniversary was really a beautiful event. We were just going to call the pastor next door and have a candlelight vigil,” Hoeft. “I think people in town were looking for a way to come together and mark the occasion. Word got around and next thing you know we had close to 800 people.”

For more information on the memorial art project, visit the Saline Area Schools art department blog.


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