Reflections on 9/11

By Fr. John Nazzaro, SDB, Director, Orange, NJ

Even though 24 years have passed since 9/11, the days that followed that dreaded day still linger in my mind, heart, and soul. As time passes, we sometimes forget the loss of innocent lives and the courageous first responders, who sacrificed so much with pride, dignity, and patriotism.

It is special to me because I shared being a chaplain at Ground Zero with my classmate, my best friend, and my brother, Fr. Jim Marra.

Fr. Jim called me the day after 9/11 and told me that the cardinal of New York, Cardinal Egan, needed priests to volunteer at Ground Zero around the clock. Fr. Jim and I signed up for three 12-hour shifts from 3:00 p.m. till 3:00 a.m. It was mandatory that two priests accompany each another as a source of support for what the ministry entailed. At this time, Fr. Jim was pastor at Corpus Christi Church in Port Chester, and I was director at Salesian High in New Rochelle.

Traveling to N.Y. was difficult, and Mr. Louis Ruiz was able to drive us to Manhattan, where we were escorted to a hotel that housed the home base for FEMA. There we were debriefed about what we would encounter. We were taken by van through Battery Park, which was filled with people waving flags with patriotic signs and signs of gratitude for first responders. Once on site, we passed two priests who were leaving the site. One of them cried, and the other looked as though he were in shock.

We were fitted with oxygen masks and proceeded to the temporary morgue, which was a tent right in the middle of Ground Zero. The heat radiating at our feet was enough to melt your shoes, and the smell of sulfur was enough to gag you if you didn’t have a mask on.

Our task was to bless the remains which were found and help the coroner ID the body part(s) and notify the Javits Center, which was used as a morgue since more remains were coming.

We blessed remains during those long hours, which seemed like an eternity. We consoled first responders who had lost brothers and sisters in law enforcement and the fire department. We consoled each other, seeing, as Fr. Jim put it, “pure evil.” This was Fr. Jim’s hometown, and he was a proud New Yorker.

I share this with everyone after all these years because it was difficult to talk about previously. But one thing I do remember is that my classmate, my best friend in the whole world, and my brother, Fr. Jim, shared this experience with me. It has been a bond through life and death since Fr. Jim passed away nine years ago. To our young men in formation and young Salesians, I pray you will have such a friendship of trust, concern, and bond of love that can come only from Jesus and His Mother. I miss Jimmy terribly.

After a year, Fr. Jim and I received a letter from the government thanking us for our service. I was asked to write a chapter of our experiences in a book which became a best seller, but refused the offer. Memories for me were for those who are not with us but are in my heart; they are at peace. Lord, may they rest in your peace.