Tarpon Springs to Unveil September 11 Memorial

At this time next year, Tarpon Springs Fire Rescue will be hosting its own 9/11 memorial service at Station 69 in Tarpon.

Brainstorming for the memorial began years ago. After countless phone calls, the crew received word that they had secured a piece of the World Trade Center. It took two years for the piece to arrive at the station. Now, the rusted steel scrap is part of the sculpture and centerpiece of the garden.

In front of Station 69, an area of bricks form a badge on the ground where two 10 foot towers, replicating the World Trade Center, sit in one corner, and a stone slab sits in the other. Inside one of the towers is the piece of steel from one of the actual towers in New York City. 

The memorial is being designed and built entirely by members of the Tarpon Springs Fire Rescue squad. With some help from the pros, Chief Richard Butcher designed the layout of the memorial. Retired Tarpon firefighter Bill Storms is responsible for the construction of the two towers.

The stone slab is a public safety memorial, donated by Thomas Dobies of Dobies Funeral Homes, with the names of those lost in the line of duty etched on the side.

According to Chief Butcher, the ideal time to dedicate the memorial would be in November. The team of workers is striving toward that goal.