Greenwich will mark the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11 with a remembrance ceremony at Cos Cob Park. At 8:46 a.m., the exact minute the North Tower was struck, a cannon will sound across Cos Cob Harbor and a bell will toll.
The program includes three keynote speakers, a reading of all 32 local victims' names and a water salute by the Greenwich Police Marine Division. The service runs from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. and is free, rain or shine.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, former U.S. Rep. Christopher Shays and Capt. Mark Turner, USN (Ret.), a Greenwich native and Greenwich High School graduate, will deliver keynote addresses, according to the Greenwich Sentinel. Shays represented Greenwich in Connecticut's Fourth District for 21 years. He helped establish the 9/11 Commission as chairman of the House subcommittee on national security.
Stephanie Dunn Ashley, CEO of the Red Cross Metro New York North Chapter and the ceremony's organizer, will give opening remarks. First Selectman Fred Camillo will offer reflections.
Edward Dadakis, a lifelong Greenwich resident and longtime Representative Town Meeting member, will read each of the 32 names aloud. Selectwoman Lauren Rabin will ring a bell after each one.
Dadakis worked for Aon, which had offices in the upper floors of the South Tower. On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, he was home on a conference call. The firm lost 176 employees.
When the Cos Cob Park memorial was dedicated in 2015, Dadakis called it "a place to remember and, just as importantly, a place to never forget."
Bells and cannon salutes will mark each moment in the attack timeline. The times: 8:46 a.m. (North Tower struck), 9:03 (South Tower struck), 9:37 (Pentagon), 9:59 (South Tower fell), 10:03 (Flight 93, Shanksville, Pennsylvania) and 10:28 (North Tower fell). The Honor Guard will remain posted at the memorial until the final 10:28 bell.
Musical performances include Ian Underwood on bagpipes, Lia Zavattaro singing the National Anthem and The Melody Men, a choral group of Greenwich veterans and Retired Men's Association members. Ken Pond of the Round Hill Volunteer Fire Company and his son Dylan will play Taps.
After the formal ceremony, the Honor Guard and bagpipers will lead a procession to the waterside memorial. The memorial, designed by Charles Hilton of Charles Hilton Architects, features two translucent glass towers overlooking Long Island Sound. It was built with private donations against a $750,000 budget.
No town in Connecticut lost more people on Sept. 11, 2001, than Greenwich.
Parking at Cos Cob Park is limited. Free shuttle service from Metro-North commuter lots will be provided by the Transportation Association of Greenwich. Seating and water will be available on site.
A second observance begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Glenville Firehouse, 266 Glenville Road, hosted by the Glenville Volunteer Fire Company. The firehouse holds a memorial built around a piece of steel recovered from the World Trade Center.







