9/11 Stories: Mayor Mark Sokolich

Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich insists that, unlike other people, he did nothing extraordinary on 9/11. But 10 years later, we know that every little act of kindness on that day was extraordinary. 

On 9/11, Sokolich was sitting in his law office in Fort Lee when his partner, Mark Macri, called him from North Bergen, where he was prosecuting a case, to tell him that a plane had just hit one of the towers of the World Trade Center. That phone call was followed by one from Sokolich’s wife, who told him to turn on the TV because a second plane had just hit the second tower. 

"I had friends working in those towers; I was in shock," Sokolich said. "When I saw those buildings fall, all I could think of was getting my kids out of school and safely home. Nobody knew what was going on, but we all knew that something bad was happening very close to home."

Sokolich, still a few years away from his political career, was just one of many concerned parents and citizens on 9/11.

"I ran to the school to get my kids out and saw the long line of parents trying to do the same thing," Sokolich said. "Everyone was trying not to panic, but you could see it on their faces. So, I jumped in as an extra body and helped the principal and administration sign the kids out and deliver them to their parents and caretakers who were lined up outside. Next thing I know, it’s six o’clock and we still had some kids left at the school with no parents. The worst imaginable thoughts entered all of our minds. Since I knew the kids and their parents, I took them back to my house.” 

This story has a happy ending because the parents of those children returned safely home to Fort Lee. 

“One father showed up at my house covered from head to toe in dust," Sokolich said. "He didn’t want his son to see him like that, and neither did we, so we immediately had him shower and change into my clothes. That’s when the reality of what happened, and what could’ve happened to him, and what did happen to so many other people, hit home. How many parents didn’t come home to get their kids that day? As a parent, that’s all I kept thinking about--those parents who never made it home.”

Home for Sokolich has always been Fort Lee. A graduate of School No. 4, the middle school and a member of Fort Lee High School Class of '81, were he was an All-State basketball and All-League baseball player, Sokolich believes in giving back to the town that he feels gave him so much. 

Losing both his parents at a young age, Sokolich said, “Fort Lee stepped in and took care of me. From teachers, to coaches, to my friends and their families, neighbors--everyone had a hand in raising me, taking care of me, and keeping me focused on my future.”

Fort Lee wasn’t just raising a son; it was raising a future mayor. 

Leaving Fort Lee to attend Rutgers University, Sokolich returned to his hometown because, he said, “My best years were in Fort Lee, and I knew that this was where I wanted to raise my family.”

And that’s just what he did. He rooted both his family and his business in the town he loves most. For Sokolich, being Mayor is more than just an honor, he said, “It’s the ultimate way I can pay back a community I feel so indebted to.” 

Sokolich, along with members of the council and the chiefs of emergency services, were invited to Hangar 17 at JFK Airport, where artifacts retrieved from Ground Zero are housed within 80,000 square feet of space. Remnants of torn clothing, shattered vehicles, twisted steel, bent bikes still chained to their racks, and pieces of personal belongings--all sacred reminders of that devastating day are housed there in one enormous mausoleum. 

Sokolich says, “When we got there, it was clear that they weren’t planning on giving anything to Fort Lee. It was like we were being interviewed, actually.”

But Sokolich and his group were determined to inform the curator of the heroic efforts of Fort Lee’s emergency services unit that answered the call of duty on the front lines that day. 

“We were hoping the Port Authority would give Fort Lee something, but everything was tagged and earmarked for display in other countries or major museums," Sokolich continued. "It was only after we left and returned home that the curator called to say that the Port Authority decided to give Fort Lee a foundation plate, a 12 foot girder, and nine pieces of I-beam.”

The 12 foot girder will stand as Fort Lee’s 9/11 monument in Constitution Park. It will contain an eternal light in honor of the heroic efforts of Fort Lee’s courageous emergency services units during a time when our nation was in distress.

There will be a 9/11 Commemoration Memorial Service at Constitution Park on Sunday, September 11th. The ceremony will begin at 9:59 a.m. with a moment of silence commemorating the fall of the South Tower, followed by another moment of silence at 10:28 a.m. to commemorate the collapse of the North Tower. There will also be a presentation of plaques to all Fort Lee Emergency Services Units. 

In addition to a line-up of distinguished speakers, the ceremony will include resident survivors Juliette Bergman and Michael DeGidio, along with U.S. Marine Corps member and Fort Lee resident, Andrew Krymkevich, who served in both Afghanistan and Iraq. 

Reflecting on the last 10 years and how they've changed the course of doing business, Mayor Sokolich says, “9/11 changed the course of politics for every town, but especially for Fort Lee. All of our emergency services units were on the front line on 9/11. The governing body is committed to making sure that our emergency services--fire, police, and ambulance--are outfitted with equipment that will safely see them, and this town, through any emergency situation.”