Members of the Hofstra University community came together on Thursday, Sept. 11, to commemorate the 26 Hofstra alumni and one student killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.
Student representatives, administration and university chaplains of multiple faiths shared remarks in front of the 9/11 Memorial Marker across from CV Starr Hall. The families of two alumni who died in the attack, Joseph Hunter and Courtney Walcott, also attended the ceremony.
Student Government Association (SGA) President Evelyn Quail began the ceremony with opening remarks on the importance of remembering 9/11 and turning tragedy into positive change.
“Twenty-four years later, we stand together as a community to support all those former and current members of the Hofstra community whose lives were forever changed that day,” Quail, a double major in political science and public policy and public service, said. “Today, and every day, may we remember the victims and heroes through our own good deeds and give back to our community with hearts filled with compassion.”
Hofstra President Susan Poser followed by thanking the Hofstra community as well as the families for their presence at the ceremony. She recounted her own harrowing experience on a “September day that looked a lot like today,” trying to contact her father, who survived where many others did not.
“Chance was what determined what happened to so many people that day, whether they lived or died,” Poser said. “We come together to acknowledge the frailty of life and remind ourselves … [that] we must seize every moment we can to build community, to practice kindness and to live our values.”
Retired Lieutenant Colonel Paul Flora, class of 1968, read the names of each the Hofstra community members lost on 9/11. Scattered throughout the audience were roses with paper slips, inscribed with the names of the 27 lost. Those holding the roses took turns placing the flowers on a blue and white wreath while Flora read the names.
Many students in attendance felt connected to the memorial service through the experiences of their own families on 9/11.
Alyssa Inserra, a junior student in the Physician Assistant Studies program, wore a 9/11 remembrance shirt to honor her father, a New York City police officer who was “newly on the job” when the first plane struck the Twin Towers.
According to Inserra, the engine of the police van her father was in stopped working as they approached the north tower of the World Trade Center. Moments later, the Tower collapsed. The malfunction potentially saved the lives of all the officers in the vehicle.
Every year on 9/11, while her father runs 9.11 miles to commemorate the attack, she attends the ceremony at Hofstra.
“I like to pay tribute here,” Inserra said. “And I really think it’s great that Hofstra does this.”
Jack Ehrlich, a sophomore political science major, recalled the lasting effects the attack has on his family and friends. Ehrlich’s uncle still suffers health issues from inhaling asbestos on 9/11 working as a police officer. Family friends of Ehrlich lost their son, whom Ehrlich said was a firefighter in Squad 288, which entered the south tower shortly before it collapsed.
“They weren’t just neighbors, they were like an extended family,” Ehrlich said. “I’ve been connected to them all my life, and even though I didn’t know this person, I can still sense how my mother feels, how my uncle feels.”
Joseph Hunter, Hofstra class of 1994, was another firefighter in Squad 288. He was a volunteer firefighter in South Hempstead during and after his time at Hofstra. His family was one of the two present at the ceremony.
Hunter’s mother, Bridget, said he “absolutely loved it” at Hofstra, where he earned his bachelor of science in business management.
His sister, Teresa, remembered how important a college degree and a career in firefighting were to him, and how he accomplished both at Hofstra. She reflected on the importance of the ceremony to mourn in community.
“[The loss] is not just ours,” she said. ”We share this tragedy with everyone, every year, always.”
Teresa also emphasized the significance of moments like Hofstra’s ceremony that carry Hunter’s legacy and that of others forward for future generations of Hofstra students to learn about and honor.
“It’s good having the continuity [of the memorial] and having it continue. People need to support that and show up for it,” she said.
Below are the 27 names of those killed on 9/11 which are inscribed on Hofstra’s memorial marker:
Kenneth M. Caldwell
John Cefalu
Joni Cesta
Susan Marie Clyne
Jeffrey M. Dingle
Andrew Fisher
Richard P. Fitzsimons
Joseph G. Hunter
Douglas G. Karpiloff
Joseph A. Kelly
Neil D. Levin
Alisha c. Levin
Noell C. Maerz
Edward J. Mardovich
Justin McCarthy
Alok K. Merta
Bernard E. Patterson
Edward J. Perrotta
Adam Ruhalter
Andrew J. Stern
Frederick T. Varacchi
Joshua Vitale
Courtney W. Walcott
Glenn E. Wilkinson
Glenn J. Winuk
Julie Lynn Zipper
