Dedication of 9/11 First Responders Monument Set for This Sunday

Community leaders that commissioned a world-class sculptor to create a monument using beams from the fallen World Trade Center to commemorate the first responders of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks achieved their goal of having the monument finished in time for its dedication this weekend.

The Oak Lawn Rotary Club will dedicate on the tenth anniversary of the terrorist attacks against American this Sunday, Sept. 11 at the Oak Lawn Metra Station. 

The finished monument site will have four beams – two freestanding beams and two attached to original spires created by Blome. One of the spires and beams has been installed at the monument site.

The second spire and other beams will be on display at the dedication this Sunday, said Dr. Sandra Bury, a Rotary Club member and chair of Monumental Oak Lawn. The installation is expected to be completed before November. The Rotary Club is look for a few volunteer cement workers to help with pouring the foundation. Ozinga, a ready-mix company, has donated the concrete mix.

Sunday’s community ceremony includes , the , the Military Order of the Purple Heart, and

The Military Order of the Purple Heart will also have a moveable wall of honor with the 400 names of Illinois soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan since Sept. 11, 2001 on display.

Jim Cornelison, the National Anthem singer for the Chicago Blackhawks, stops by Oak Lawn to sing his stirring rendition of “The Start Spangled Banner” before heading over to Soldier Field to do the same at the Bears game.

U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-IL) will do the unveiling honors, though you if stop by the Metra Station on Saturday on the way to Fall On the Green, you may be able to catch the installation of the first pieces before it is draped for Sunday's dedicaiton.

The dedication ceremony for the 9/11 First Responders Monument starts at 10 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 11, at the Oak Lawn Metra Station at 95th Street and Museum Drive.