Fathers Honored at 9/11 Memorial & Museum
Paying tribute to first responders who made the ultimate sacrifice is why the New York City Police Department and New York Fire Department have made a visit to the 9/11 Memorial part of their recruits’ official training. Since many of those who join the NYPD or FDNY follow their father or a loved one into the service, many times one of those recruits is honoring their own father who was killed as a result of the 9/11 attacks.
In the first visit of NYPD recruits to the Memorial and Museum in 2017, Brittany Roy paid tribute to her father Timothy Alan Roy Sr., a sergeant in the Traffic Control Division Bus Unit who was killed on 9/11.
Another FDNY probie class legacy, John Palombo, laid a memorial wreath at the parapets in October 2017 in honor of his father Frank Palombo of Ladder 105, a 22-year veteran of the FDNY.
“I feel close to my dad, I feel close to the fire department,” Palombo said during that visit. “And this is a place where everybody feels what I feel every day. […] It doesn’t matter what you speak, where you’re from, everybody understands the pain and respects the loss. With the FDNY, it’s even stronger, being back here.”
During another visit by 300 FDNY probationary firefighters in April 2017 Carl Kumpel stood alongside the South Pool to honor the 343 members of the FDNY who were killed on 9/11, including his father, Kenneth Bruce Kumpel of Ladder 25. Kumpel was remembered as always having “time for his sons, Gregory and Carl, whether it was boating, a game of kickball or coaching organized sports of soccer or baseball,” The Staten Island Advance reported in 2001.
“When I was younger I remember going to many department functions with my father,” said Probationary Firefighter Kumpel during this visit. “Being exposed to the camaraderie of this job is why I joined. I’m looking forward to answering the call and being there for anyone that needs it. It means the world to me to follow in the footstep of my father and make him proud.”
By Christine Murphy, 9/11 Memorial Project Coordinator
Since 2014, the 9/11 Memorial & Museum has participated in Make Music New York (MMNY), an annual musical celebration phenomenon that fills New York City with music each year on June 21, the longest day of the year. Now entering its 12th year, MMNY hosts more than 1,000 free performances in public spaces throughout the five boroughs.
Michael Packer was a lifelong musician, and an early encounter with a legendary cellist was a formative moment. His wife, Rekha, shared the story of his meeting with Pablo Casals in a Call to Remember recording.