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| The Power of Steel... |
June 03, 2002 |
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WHAT WAS KNOCKED DOWN WILL RISE AGAIN
Two 20-foot steel beams are currently on display at the Hispanic Cultural Center at 4th Street and Cesar Chavez. If you haven`t already, you should gather your family and drop by to have a look. The beams, remnants of the World Trade Center, are generous gifts from the people of New York.
While terrorists can knock down our skyscrapers, it`s clear that they can`t begin to dent the steel of our American character. The story of how these beams found their way to Albuquerque stands as a powerful testimony to the unity and resiliency of our nation.
"While terrorists can knock down our skyscrapers, it`s clear that they can`t begin to dent the steel of our American character."
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The Sacred Heart Catholic Church, where as many as 800 people meet weekly to worship and give thanks, sits in Barelas, one of Albuquerque’s oldest neighborhoods. In the 1970’s the church, with its two prominent bell towers, was razed because the structure was unsound. Parishioners were then forced to move across the street, into the existing Church gymnasium. The bells were lost until recently, when one was found in somebody’s backyard.
Now that one of those bells has reappeared, the Parish and members of the community hope to once again sound the bells throughout Barelas.
Members of the Albuquerque and Bernalillo County Fire Departments used ladder trucks to hoist a U.S. Flag six stories over the steel beams and over Barelas
This need and an inspired idea were the beginning of a wonderful journey that brought together the people of New Mexico and the citizens of New York.
The Barelas Community Development Corporation (Barelas CDC) formulated the idea and led the effort to get a piece of Ground Zero to New Mexico. Leaders in the community requested that Archbishop Michael Sheehan, Rep. Wilson, and others ask the City of New York for two steel beams from the World Trade Center. These beams, the hope was, would be incorporated into the design of the new bell tower in a manner that would respect and remember the terrible terrorist attacks against our country the morning of September 11, 2001.
A delegation from New Mexico, including Father Moore from the Sacred Heart Parish; John Garcia from the Barelas CDC; Sosimo Padilla, Chairman of the Bell Tower Finance Committee; and Stan Tinker, owner of Freight Logistics and a Sacred Heart Parishioner, traveled to New York. There, they met with construction workers at Ground Zero to pick up the New Mexico-bound steel.
The delegation bowed their heads as Father Moore blessed the beams for their safe journey to a new beginning.
A NEW BEGINNING
These beams arrived in our state on Saturday, May 25 and are currently on display at the Hispanic Cultural Center, where hundreds of New Mexicans have gathered to view and touch these symbols of what has become one of the defining events in our nation’s history.
It`s comforting to know that what was knocked down in New York will soon rise again in the heart of New Mexico, in Barelas.
Firefighters and law enforcement officers paid their respects to their fallen comrades by welcoming the steel beams to New Mexico with a full escort, an honor guard, and a larger than life flag that was draped over the beams until it was lifted by fire crews.
Fire and police helmets stood guard over the beams as New Mexicans approached to pay their respects.
The bells of Sacred Heart Parish rang when World War II ended. They rang for weddings and funerals. They rang every Sunday morning over the City of Albuquerque to call people to worship. At least one of those bell towers will be now be rebuilt and the bells will ring again. They will ring as a call to prayer, and now, they will also ring in remembrance.
We saw the face of evil on September 11th. And in the aftermath, we saw the depth of America`s goodness and a return to simple faith. We are a strong, loving people and a faithful people. New Mexico will rebuild this bell tower and remember. This bell tower will remind us and call us to worship for many years to come.
President Bush said that terrorism cannot dent the steel of American resolve. I agree. These beams, this parish, this community, represent the strength of our American character and all the best our Nation has to offer.
Even as we counted and grieved our dead in the wake of September 11, as we struggled to make sense of what happened and understand why someone could harbor such hate in their heart, we began to rebuild and recover.
We stumbled, but we did not fall.
And with Barelas as our focal point, we continue to rebuild and find our strength. |
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