MORE: Read more about Long Island's victims of 9/11
70 photos
Manika Narula's parents, Baldev and Maldu, hold a photo of her at their home. (june 3, 2011) Photo Credit: Newsday / Mario Gonzalez
Brian Lyons of Patchogue talks about his son, Patrick, who worked for the FDNY squad 252. Here, he holds a replica street sign which was re-named in his son's honor. (June 28, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
John Sarle, who was working on the 25th floor of the north tower on Sept. 11, managed to get out but his brother, Paul, who worked on the 105th floor of the same tower did not survive. (Aug. 23, 2011) Photo Credit: Newsday/Alejandra Villa
Family members of Thomas R. Kelly, a New York City firefighter killed on Sept. 11, 2001, include, back from from left, Jean Marie Farrell, Rich Farrell, Jim Kelly, Melissa Kelly,Brian Farrell, Patrick Farrell, Melissa Kelly, Eileen Kelly, Bob Kelly, Sue Kelly and Emmett Kelly. (July 16, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Sheila Paolillo shares memories of her brother, John, who died on Sept. 11, 2001. (May 27, 2011) Photo Credit: Brittany Wait
Hicksville residents Robert, left, and Christopher Howard, the sons of George Gerard Howard, who was killed on Sept. 11, 2001. (Aug. 23, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Donna Hickey recalls the devastation in the moments after learning that her husband, Brian Hickey, died in the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. (Jan. 14, 2011) Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Jacqueline Fanning shares memories of her father, firefighter John Fanning, who died in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. (June 15, 2011) Photo Credit: Newsday / Jessica Rotkiewicz
Jane Wixted remembers Glen Pettit and holds a book that depicts the events of Sept. 11, 2001. (June 23, 2011) Photo Credit: Newsday / Jessica Rotkiewicz
Mary Hamilton, left, and Patricia Danielo, remember their brother, James Haran. (Sept. 4, 2011) Photo Credit: Newsday / Mario Gonzalez
From left, Michael Stack (son of Lawrence T. Stack), Kathleen Stack, Conor Stack, Kathryn Stack, Brian Stack (son of Lawrence T. Stack), Kaelin Stack, Teri Stack (widow of Lawrence T. Stack), Colleen Stack, Christian Stack, Patrick Stack and Matthew Stack. The Stack family poses for a portrait in the living room at Michael and Kathleen Stack's home in St. James. (Aug. 18, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
From left, wife Katrina Marino, son Tyler Marino, 11, and daughter Kristin Marino, 13. Kenneth Marino, 40, a New York City Rescue One firefighter, was killed on Sept. 11, 2001. (Aug. 4, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Family members of Joshua Vitale, 28, a trading sales clerk at Cantor Fitzgerald, was killed on Sept. 11, 2001. They are Vitale's mother Susan Rosen and brother Brian Vitale. Photo Credit: Mike Roy
From left, sister Jennifer Strada and parents Ernest Strada and Mary Ann Strada pose for a portrait in front of a wall of family pictures at Ernest and Mary Ann's home in Westbury. (Aug. 18, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Amy and Peter Mastrocinque look at photos from Amy's Sweet 16 in 2001 as they sit in their Kings Park home (July 31, 2011) Photo Credit: Ed Betz
Ronald Hoerner, 58, director of security for Summit Security at the World Trade Center's south tower, was killed on September 11, 2001. His wife ,Barbara Hoerner is shown in her Massapequa Park home. (Aug. 5, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Charles Adrian Duran, left, along with brother Winston Arthur Grant II, and his mother Joyce Grant lost their loved one, Winston Arther Grant on 9/11. They cherish an image of him seen going down a flight of stairs, in Tower One, with other people, taken by Andre Lamberston for Time. (Aug. 16, 2011) Photo Credit: Newsday/Jessica Rotkiewicz
Parents Joseph and Bridget "Tess" Hunter at their South Hempstead home. They sit in the room of their son, Joseph Hunter, 32, who was a New York City firefighter killed on Sept. 11, 2001. (July 8, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
From left, Andrew Jr., 19, Sean, 9, Matthew, 15, and Kelsey Jordan, 13, spend time together at their home in Westhampton. The Jordan family lost their father Andrew Jordan, a member of FDNY, during the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center
Thomas Farino's brother-in-law, James Dinnigan, holds a picture of Farino heading to the World Trade Center on the morning of the attacks. (Sept. 7, 2011) Photo Credit: Newsday / Robert Cassidy
Lisa Friedman-Clark (wife) Michael Friedman (son, back left), and Daniel Friedman (son), talk about Andrew K. Friedman, 44, who worked as a VP in charge of equity trading at Carr Futures at the World Trade Center Tower 1. (June 26, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Geoffrey Robson of Manhattan stands on the balcony of his apartment after talking about his father Donald Robson, 52, of Manhasset, who was a partner and bond trader at Cantor Fitzgerald. (April 28, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Ronnie Gies of FDNY Squad 288 died on Sept. 11, 2001. Carol Gies stands near a video of her husband as he is about to enter the World Trade Center. (July 1, , 2011) Photo Credit: David Pokress
From left, Dorine Hetzel-Dand (sister), Barbara Hetzel (mother) and Egon Hetzel (father), pose for a portrait after talking about Thomas J. Hetzel, who worked for the FDNY Ladder 13, and was an ex-captain of the volunteer fire department in Franklin Square and honorary chief. (June 27, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Allison Hobbs and her children, Jacqueline, 21, and David, 18, at their home in Baldwin. Thomas Hobbs, 41, worked as an energy broker at Cantor Fitzgerald at the World Trade Center. (June 9, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Helen O'Mahony (mother) and Robert O'Mahony (brother) pose near a sketch of Matthew O'Mahony, 39, who worked at Cantor Fitzgerald at the World Trade Center. (June 9, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Glenn Thompson's father, Ed, reflects on his son, who was one of the many Long Islanders who died on Sept. 11, 2001. (March 4, 2011) Photo Credit: Brittany Wait
Bernard O'Brien remembers his son, Timothy Michael O'Brien, as a great athlete and the child all his other children aspired to emulate. (May 11, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Patricia Rosen remembers her husband, Mark Rosen, 45, who was lost on Sept. 11, 2001 in Tower Two of the World Trade Center. (May 16, 2011) Photo Credit: Scott Moore
Talat Hamdani remembers her son Salman Hamdani, a police cadet and paramedic who died in the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center. (April 22, 2011) Photo Credit: Jon Premosch
Richard Mingione of West Islip talks about his brother, Thomas Mingione, 34, of West Islip. Thomas Mingione worked for Ladder 132 in Prospect Heights and died on Sept. 11, 2001. (June 8, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Diane Miller, right, of Valley Stream, sits with Janice Testa after talking about her husband, Henry Miller, Jr., 52, of Massapequa, who worked at Ladder No. 105 on Dean Street in Brooklyn. (May 24, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
From left, Dan Polatsch, Linda Bodian and Bud Polatsch hold a photo of family member Lawrence Polatsch, who died on 9/11 working as an equities trader at Cantor Fitzgerald. (April 12, 2011) Photo Credit: Newsday / Mario Gonzalez
Barbara Talty and daughter, Kelly Talty, 9, share a moment in their Wantagh home after speaking about husband and father Paul Talty, who was a NYPD officer, last seen in the staircase on the 20th floor of the south tower on Sept. 11, 2011. (May 10, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Katharine McDonnell talks about her father Brian McDonnell, who died in the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. He is remembered as his family's leader who always put other people before himself. (May 2, 2011) Photo Credit: Scott Moore
Leslie Dimmling, talks about her husband and Sept. 11 victim, William, saying he was a wonderful father who demanded the best out of himself and the people around him. (April 7, 2011) Photo Credit: Newsday / Robert Cassidy
Danielle Fehling of Wantagh shares memories of her firefighter husband, Lee, who died in the Sept. 11 attacks. (May 12, 2011) Photo Credit: Chris Ware
From left, Loretta Brethel Feret, David Brethel and Elizabeth Domino remember their brother, Daniel Brethel, a firefighter who lost his life on Sept. 11, 2001. (April 26, 2011) Photo Credit: Jim Staubitser
Deborah Garcia, who lost her husband David Garcia during the September 11, 2001 attacks, shares memories of him while at her home in Freeport. Photo Credit: Chris Ware
From left in rear, Michael Halderman, Renee Halderman, Marianne Halderman, Christine Olsen, and Steven Olsen. From left in front, Steven Halderman, Geraldine Halderman, and Christopher Olsen, 13, gather at Geraldine's home in Bohemia. Family member David Halderman died in the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Cecil Burke, who lost his sister Dorothy Morgan during the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on theWorld Trade Center, sits at his home in Central Islip. Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Lawrence McGovern talks about his mother, Ann McGovern, saying she was full of life and very passionate about sports. (March 3, 2011) Photo Credit: Scott Moore
Cathy Marchese-Collins of West Babylon holds a quilt made for the family after 9/11 honoring her sister, Laura Ann Marchese, who worked for Alliance Consulting in the north tower. (April 14, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Jay and Carolyn Winuk of Mahopac, N.Y., look through old pictures of Jay's brother, attorney and volunteer firefighter Glenn Winuk. (April 17, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
a portrait of Elias and Christine Anchundia standing in front of a picture of their son Joseph Anchundia, who worked for Sandler O'Neill at the World Trade Center. (March 17, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Victor Elefante, 48, and his daughter, Lauren Rose Elefante, 3, of Bellmore visit the engraved bench of Victor's cousin, Charles Lucania of Long Beach. The bench was accidentally engraved with the wrong birth year -- Charles was born in 1966. Victor says, "To this day, Charlie is smiling about that. He always used to claim to be younger than he was." (March 8, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Friends and family of James B. Reilly, a victim of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks who lived in Manhattan but grew up in Huntington Station. They are, clockwise from bottom left, sister Jeann Reilly-Kennedy of Centerport, girlfriend Jen Bressler of Greenwich, Conn., best friend Jon Johnnidis of Brooklyn, sister Christine Reilly and father Bill Reilly of Huntington Station. (March 13, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Maureen Dominguez remembers her former husband, Carlos, as she looks through a photo album. Carlos worked in the World Trade Center for Marsh & McLennan on the day of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. (March 10, 2011) Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Stephanie Tipping of St. James fondly recalls her brother's knack for living life to the fullest. John J. Tipping II died in the South Tower of the World Trade Center during the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. (March 7, 2011) Photo Credit: Katie Epifane
Ann Erker remembers her husband, Erwin, who died in the World Trade Center attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. (March 7, 2011) Photo Credit: Newsday / Mario Gonzalez
John Vigiano, of Deer Park, is a retired FDNY captain. Vigiano lost his two sons, Joe and John, during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. (Feb. 10, 2011) Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Stacey Stone, of Bellmore, lost her husband, Lonny, in the World Trade Center attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. (Jan. 21, 2011) Photo Credit: Chris Ware
JoAnn Cross, of Islip Terrace, lost her husband, Dennis, in the World Trade Center attacks on Sept 11, 2001. Cross holds a photo of her and her late husband in her home. (Jan. 18, 2011) Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Dina Marie Amatuccio of Whitestone and her husband, Nick Begonja. Amatuccio is the daughter of 9/11 victim Joseph Amatuccio, a manager of operations and maintenance for Port Authority at the World Trade Center. (Jan. 29, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Kate Stern, of Bellmore, is the wife of 9/11 victim Andrew Stern, who was a municipal bond broker at Cantor Fitzgerald. (Jan. 8, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Margaret "Margie" Wilkinson, 54, sits in front of her Bayport home where she continues to live and her children. She was married to Lt. Glenn Wilkinson of FDNY Engine Company 238, who died on Sept. 11, 2001. (March 15, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Kara Walker, of Charlotte, N.C., holds a photo of her brother, Steven Coakley, at her parents home in Deer Park. (Feb. 24, 2011) Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Elizabeth Ahearn is the sister of Brian G. Ahearn, one of the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center. Photo Credit: Jon Millian
Denise Schrang, of Holbrook, is the wife of 9/11 victim Gerard P. Schrang, who was a firefighter with Rescue 3 in the Bronx. (Feb. 5, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Chris Byrne named his oldest child after his brother, Timothy, who worked at Sandler O'Neill & Partners when he died on Sept. 11, 2001. (Jan. 4, 2011) Photo Credit: Jim Staubitser
Michelle Bergsohn, of Baldwin Harbor is shown at her home Feb. 10, 2011. Bergsohn lost her husband, Alivin, on Sept. 11, 2001 in the World Trade Center attacks. Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Cindy Comer of New Hampshire, a former Long Island resident, is the wife of 9/11 victim Ronald Comer. (Feb. 9, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
From left, 9/11 victim Wade Green's brother, Barry Green, his mother Wilhelmina, daughter Danielle, and wife Roxanne are shown at home in Westbury. (Feb. 24, 2011) Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Ricardo Barnes, of Bay Shore, is the husband of 9/11 victim Sheila Barnes. (Jan. 6, 2010) Photo Credit: Jim Staubitser
Philip Manning is the father of Terence John Manning, who died in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Rosemary Cain, of Massapequa, lost her son, George, a firefighter, in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. (Nov. 10, 2010) Photo Credit: Newsday / Arnold Miller
Ted and Susan Beck, of Melville, are the parents of 9/11 victim Lawrence Beck, who was a mailroom clerk at Cantor Fitzgerald. (Jan. 10, 2011) Photo Credit: Mike Roy
Ken Fairben, of Floral Park, lost his son, Keith, a paramedic, in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. (Feb. 15, 2011) Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Edward Ainbinder, of Baldwin Harbor, is the uncle of Kevin Nathaniel Colbert, who was killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. (Feb. 22, 2011) Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Jane Pollicino, of Plainview, lost her husband, Steve, in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Photo Credit: Arnold Miller
Bronx resident Frank Dominguez holds a painting of his brother, Jerome, who perished in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Photo Credit: Chris Ware
Long Island Remembers
Linda Gronlund
Age: 46
Employer: United Airlines, Flight 93
Place of death: Shanksville, Pa.
Community: Sag Harbor
County: Suffolk
About Linda Gronlund
Linda Gronlund, 46, grew up in Sag Harbor and lived in upstate Greenwood Lake. A manager of environmental compliance for BMW North America, she was aboard United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed near Shanksville, Pa.
For a lawyer who loved cars and the environment, Linda Gronlund had found the perfect job. Employed by BMW for 11 years, she was charged with ensuring that the carmaker's factories met environmental codes.
"She wanted to make the world a better place," said her mother, Doris Gronlund of Sag Harbor. "She really worked to make our air better."
Her love of cars started early. In high school her parents presented her with a Lamborghini frame mounted on a Volkswagen chassis. In her 20s she joined the Sports Car Club of America. She became a regional flag marshal; her responsibility was to keep in contact with flaggers in case of problems. Her mother, swept along by her daughter's enthusiasm, also became a flagger. Linda Gronlund had met her boyfriend, Joseph DeLuca of Ledgewood, N.J., through the club. The couple were traveling to California to tour vineyards. He was also killed on the United flight.
When Gronlund would return to Sag Harbor for visits, she often disappeared for hours to a private spot. Once she took her mother there: Barcelona Neck off Route 114 in Sag Harbor. The two sat on a bluff in total silence, her mother recalled. In 2004, the 500 acres were named the Linda Gronlund Memorial Nature Preserve.
As a tribute to Gronlund, BMW started a scholarship at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for a female environmental engineer. "In that way, her work lives on," her mother said.
The constant support of her younger daughter, Elsa, and neighbors has sustained her, said Doris Gronlund, whose husband died seven months after her daughter's death. "For 10 years every time I go into town I have at least one hug, if not three."
That and the memory that the last conversation she had with her daughter was a good one. Gronlund had been planning a trip to Sag Harbor right after she returned from California. "She said 'I can't wait to see you. You're such a great mom,'" Doris Gronlund said. The mother in turn told her daughter how much she loved her and how proud of her she was.
"I tell people 'tell the person you love them. It may be the last chance,'" she said. "I heard my daughter say that. That's a pretty nice feeling." - Ridgely Ochs
This profile was originally published in 2001/2002
As hijackers took over United Airlines Flight 93, passenger Linda Gronlund called her younger sister, Elsa. Angry and defiant, she told her what was happening. Then she told her sister where to find all her personal papers.
"She knew it was going to happen," said her mother, Doris Gronlund of Sag Harbor.
Linda Gronlund, who would have turned 47 yesterday, had been flying with her boyfriend, Joseph DeLuca, to tour California vineyards, her mother said. She was on the plane that crashed near Pittsburgh.
An attorney, Gronlund worked for BMW in Montvale, N.J., as an environmental manager.
Gronlund had met DeLuca through the Sports Car Club of America, one of her many passions. She was the group's chief of flagging and communications, and her role was to keep drivers apprised of any problems on the racetrack. She was so active in the group that she even got her mother involved as a volunteer, helping out at races.
She also loved sailing and scuba diving and held a brown belt in karate. "Linda had no fear," said Bryan Deane, a longtime friend. "I have not seen her back down from anything."
Deane and Gronlund had talked about a "what-if scenario," Deane said. Highly focused and organized, she was emphatic that her family members know what to do if anything happened to her, he said. "Her sister was her dearest friend," he said. "And she adored her mother."
Gronlund grew up in Sag Harbor and attended Pierson High School there. She graduated magna cum laude from Long Island University and then went on to the Washington School of Law at American University. She lived in upstate Greenwood Lake. In addition to her mother and sister, she is survived by her father, Gunnar Gronlund of Sun City Center, Fla.
Her mother, citing security, declined to disclose the details of Gronlund's last conversation with her sister. But she feels sure her daughter was one of the passengers whose defiance prevented the flight from completing the hijackers' mission. "That," she said, "is what I keep saying to myself." -- Sandra Peddie
Long Island remembers
Peter Keith Ortale
Age: 37
Employer: Euro Brokers
Place of death: Tower Two
Community: Sag Harbor
County: Suffolk
About Peter Ortale
Peter K. Ortale, 37, who lived in Sag Harbor and SoHo, was a broker for Eurobroker. From his office on the 84th floor of the south tower, he had phoned his wife, then his mother to let them know he was OK. He asked his mother to listen to news reports and keep him posted. She tried, but got a busy signal when she dialed back.
The summer he finished his sophomore year at Duke University, Peter Ortale and a friend drove to Alaska to work in a salmon cannery. They spent their earnings in Hawaii, where they rented a house for a month and went surfing and swimming. Then, at the end of his junior year, Ortale spent the summer working as a landscaper in Nantucket.
"When he came home, he drove a motorcycle with a backpack full of lobsters," said his sister, Cathy Grimes, 51, of Merion, Pa.
After graduation, Ortale moved to Perth, Australia, to play on that country's national lacrosse team. Wanderlust led him to places like Thailand and Egypt before he settled in New York City in 1988.
"He was curious about other cultures," his sister said. "I look at Peter as someone I admired quite a bit. There was an unconditional love that you don't get from a lot of people. He did little, thoughtful kinds of things."
Ortale loved to share: his wine, his time, his life, and sayings he used to jot down or rip out of newspapers and keep in his wallet. His friends called them "Peterisms."
"In the race to be better or the best, miss not the joy of being," was one of Grimes' favorites.
The summer before 9/11, Ortale gave the book "A Short Guide to A Happy Life" by Anna Quindlen, to several people in his life because it summed up his philosophy. He gave a copy to his wife, Mary Duff; his mother, Mary Ortale, who died in 2003; his brother Gil, and three sisters - Grimes, Mary Malitas and Julie Ortale.
They cherish that memory. "There is a light that went out. I feel like a sense of security is gone - just that certainty about things. The spontaneous joy that I always felt was part of my life had disappeared," Grimes said. "I can't relight it." - Chau Lam
This profile was originally published in 2001/2002
Peter Ortale worked hard and played hard, his family said.
Ortale, 37, who worked at Eurobrokers, a brokerage firm, also was a diehard lacrosse player - captain of his college team at Duke, a sometime member of the U.S. lacrosse team and a player for the New York Athletic Club.
He had moved to New York from Philadelphia in 1988, his sisters said, and loved it here. He and his wife lived in SoHo and spent Labor Day at their home in Sag Harbor.
After the first jet crashed into the World Trade Center last week, he called his mother, his wife and a friend in California from his office on the 82nd floor to say that he'd survived.
"He thought it was an accident," Mary Ortale, one of his three sisters, said. "He was last seen heading for the staircase."
He was with three co-workers and friends, Ortale said, none of whom has been found.
The sisters and their mother, also named Mary, drove to New York from Pennsylvania last week to console Peter's grieving wife. Since then, they have made the rounds of area hospitals and information centers.
"He's very generous, very strong," his sister Mary said, holding back tears. "Just a fun-loving guy.."
Long Island remembers
Andrew Brian Jordan
Age: 36
Employer: FDNY
Place of death: Unknown
Community: Remsenburg
County: Suffolk
About Andrew Jordan
Andrew Brian Jordan, 36, of Remsenburg was a firefighter with Ladder 132 in Brooklyn. He was last seen in the south tower.
A decade after Andrew Jordan's death, his wife, Lisa, has made sure their children have the same sense of service that their father had.
Kelsey, 3 at the time of her father's death, recently cut off 11 inches of her hair for the group Locks of Love, and Matthew, who was 5, went to Mississippi for Habitat for Humanity. Matthew is a junior firefighter with the Westhampton Beach Fire Department. Andrew Jr., 9 when his father died and now a freshman at Iona College, did the same until he aged out.
The family is training its second guide dog for the Guide Dog Foundation. The fact that some dogs are going to help injured U.S. soldiers back from war deepens the connection Lisa Jordan feels with the organization. As a result of Sept. 11, "we have a war going," she said. "And how many think of it?"
Andrew Jordan was always working hard. "He always worked two jobs," Lisa Jordan said. At the time, he also worked as an electric lineman.
On Sept. 11 he was working an extra shift to bank days so he could take off for the birth of their fourth child, due in two weeks.
Never one with "grandiose goals," beyond being healthy and happy, he valued time with his children, his wife said. He liked going to the beach and working on his cars. Baseball was a passion. He took the family to Cooperstown to see the Baseball Hall of Fame and built a diamond in the backyard for the kids.
His oldest son has carried on his sports enthusiasm. Andrew Jr., who is majoring in history, will spend his second summer as an intern for the Westhampton Aviators baseball team. Matthew loves movie-making, his mother said, and daughter Kelsey is serious about soccer and gymnastics. The youngest, Sean, born Sept. 26, 2001, plays baseball and is a history buff like his older brother. - Ridgely Ochs
This profile was originally published in 2001/2002
Firefighter Andrew Jordan's helmet told the story of his career. It was gnarled, curled, twisted, smoked out and fire damaged, said Lt. John Graziano, who worked with Jordan at Division 15, Battalion 38 in Brooklyn.
Even in his first year with Ladder Company 132, Jordan was involved with some of the most intense blazes that the firefighters of 132 had seen. About five years ago, the firefighters of Ladder 132 were deployed to Pacific Street in Brooklyn to extinguish what Graziano called "an unbelievable fire."
"There was a baby that died," Graziano said. "The guys were trying to get in to make the rescue." But, Graziano said, with the fire blazing out of every window, "firemen had to bail out with the fire chasing them." Jordan was among those who made it out. "If you get through a fire like that, it's something that we all respect you for. The more difficult the job, the more respect," Graziano said.
Jordan joined Division 15, Battalion 38, in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, in May 1995. "He was a pleasurable man. Always laughing, always smiling," Graziano said. Firefighter Randy Foss of Ladder 132 described Jordan as "a real fun-loving guy. A big fellow but a gentle giant."
Jordan, 36, of Remsenburg is presumed dead in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. He was dispatched along with the other men of Ladder 132 to the World Trade Center. Although his body was not recovered, Graziano said he saw Jordan's engine under the wreckage of the collapsed north bridge on West Street.
Born in Queens, Jordan and his family moved to West Islip, where he graduated from West Islip High School in 1983. He attended a technical school in Ohio for several years before working at LILCO, first in gas construction and later with overhead electrical lines.
His wife, Lisa Jordan, said her husband was a dedicated family man. He had taken their son Andrew Jr., 9, to Mets and Yankees games this past summer and had built a small baseball park in their backyard to encourage his son's love of the game. Jordan often wrestled with their son Matthew, 6. He and his daughter, Kelsey, shared a love for Tootsie Rolls, his wife said. "Kelsey remembers that her daddy always brought her Tootsie Rolls," she said. The couple's youngest son, Sean, was born on Sept. 26.
Graziano said Jordan was defined by his dedication, physical strength and amicable demeanor. "He was a super, super strong guy," Graziano said. "But as strong as he was, that's how nice he was."
Jordan's dedication was not just for fighting fires, Graziano said. "He was dedicated to helping people in a time of crisis: whether it be a fire, or car accident or whatever. He would give you 110 percent. He was top-notch in his field." - Nick Iyer
September 11, 2011, Newsday, 9/11 Anniversary: A decade later, Long Island Remembers,
Laura A. Marchese
Age: 35
Employer: Alliance Consulting Group
Place of death: Tower One
Community: Oceanside
County: Nassau
About Laura Marchese
Laura Ann Marchese, 35, was an executive assistant at Alliance Consulting on the 102nd floor of the north tower.
On Sept. 1, 2001, Laura Ann Marchese moved into the house in Oceanside she had bought with her longtime boyfriend, Joseph Mendez. They were planning to marry.
Ten days later, from her job on the 102nd floor of the north tower, Marchese managed to call Mendez just after the first plane struck, saying, "I'm OK; I'm being checked out." So in the hours, days and weeks that followed, her sister, Cathy Marchese-Collins, believed she was simply missing.
"Because of what Joe said, I thought, like everyone else, that she was walking around with amnesia, that somebody else was taking care of her," Marchese-Collins, of West Babylon, said. "You have your own little fantasies ... your heart tells you something and your mind tells you something else."
Shortly before the first anniversary of the attacks, her family was notified that Marchese's remains had been found.
"She loved life," said Marchese-Collins, who said her sister loved skiing and rollerblading.
Marchese-Collins said that without her sister - the baby of the family - the whole life of their family changed. Mendez and Marchese had come over every week, for dinner, to play card games or board games. Since Sept. 11, "it's very lonely," she said. "It's a totally different existence."
It's especially hard to think about what her sister has missed. Marchese-Collins and her husband, who had tried for years without success to get pregnant, have adopted a son, Michael Anthony, now 7.
"The kid looks just like us," she said. "I truly believe Laura had a hand in it." - Melanie Lefkowitz
This profile was originally published in 2001/2002
They share the most horrendous of circumstances, a unity of sudden violence and death, of shattered lives awash in lingering sorrow. And yet, the relatives of those killed in the Oklahoma City bombing and the World Trade Center attack have found a sweet comfort together.
Someone understands their pain.
Families from two of the deadliest attacks on United States soil came together Saturday night to mark the fifth anniversary of 9/11. They gathered in Rockville Centre at South Nassau Communities Hospital's World Trade Center Family Center. The center, which has helped more than 5,000 bereaved family members, and 9/11 responders and their relatives since it opened on Sept. 18, 2001, offers workshops and activities, as well as emotional support.
"I'm so glad to see this," said Oklahoma City resident Diane Leonard, 59. "It gives these people a safe place to be with others who absolutely understand."
It was the first time Leonard met Lorraine Marchese, 67, of Freeport, but the two exchanged emotional embraces throughout the night. Leonard lost her husband of 20 years, Don, in the April 19, 1995, bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City.
Marchese lost her daughter, Laura Ann Marchese, 35, on Sept. 11, 2001 in New York. A week later, Leonard headed to Manhattan to comfort the bereaved. It was the same kind of comfort that Leonard herself had received from a widow of the 1988 bombing of Pan Am 103.
"People who experience sudden trauma meet on a different level," Leonard said. "We don't get together and talk about the weather. It's much deeper than that, even when we first meet each other."
Five years ago, Leonard met Marchese's other daughter, Cathy Ann Marchese-Collins, who had been seeking help with her loss. They speak every other week and have become so close that a photo of her friend sits on Leonard's dresser. "We talked through a lot of different stages, a lot of pain," Leonard said.
The common heartache that the two sets of victims share was apparent as the group stood in a circle Saturday night and shared their stories with each other, often exchanging hugs.
Many of the 9/11 family members praised the center, calling it a second home where understanding comes in an instant and often without words. "You think you're all alone when this happens, and you're not," said Marchese. "We've developed our own little family here."
The marking of the fifth anniversary makes it especially difficult, many said. "Every anniversary is hard but this year is just harder," one 9/11 widow told the group. "I feel like I'm going to jump out of my skin."
After a dinner, the group broke into clusters catering to specific types of loss, such as siblings, children or spouses. "This way they can talk with an Oklahoma City person and get some insight and inspiration and share," said Margie Miller, 56, of Baldwin, who lost her husband, Joel, on 9/11 and is the center's family outreach coordinator.
Doris Jones, 57, of Norman, Okla., lost not only her daughter Carrie Lenz, 26, in the Oklahoma City bombing but also her grandson, with whom Lenz was six months pregnant. Like Leonard, she came to New York just weeks after the attacks and realized the bond she shared with 9/11 families.
"I watched those blank looks on their faces and I thought, 'That was me six years ago,'" she said. "I knew I had been in their shoes."
She hopes 9/11 families understand that, while their loss will remain, the pain eases. "They're still going to have times when they pick up the phone and want to call and share something special and they can't," Jones said. "But if they can see after 11 years that I still can go on, that I still can do, then maybe they'll see that they can, too." - Denise M. Bonilla
September 11, 2011, Newsday, 9/11 Anniversary: A decade later, Long Island Remembers,
Katherine Marie McGarry-Noack
Age: 30
Employer: Telekurs USA
Place of death: Tower One
Community: North Merrick
County: Nassau
About Katherine McGarry-Noack
Katherine McGarry-Noack, 30, of Hoboken, N.J., grew up in North Merrick. She worked for Telekurs USA, a financial firm in Connecticut. On Sept. 11, McGarry-Noack was attending a meeting at the World Trade Center.
Katherine McGarry-Noack - who went by Katie - got a call the night of Sept. 10, 2001, to take her boss' place the next morning at a meeting at Windows on the World.
So McGarry-Noack, 30, who had married five months before and recently taken a job she loved at Telekurs, a financial firm in Connecticut, headed to the World Trade Center with her husband, Bradley Noack. Noack worked for Lehman Brothers in the north tower. They said goodbye, and she took an express elevator to the top.
"Brad had just gotten to his seat when the building shook," said Katie's sister, Ellen Macri. McGarry-Noack managed to get a BlackBerry to text her husband.
"She was able to communicate two or three times, and she was able to say goodbye to him," Macri said.
McGarry-Noack was one of five siblings who grew up in North Merrick.
"She was very vivacious, very determined, very loving," her sister said. "She had a deftness for talking her way out of traffic tickets. She had a charismatic personality, she could do it with a wink and a smile, a laugh and a giggle."
Since 2001, McGarry-Noack's husband - who stood that day watching the towers collapse with his wife - has remarried and had two children. Her brother Patrick has had two children, and her nephew Kevin did two tours in Iraq. Her father died, and her mother relocated to North Carolina. And exactly two months after 9/11, Macri delivered her daughter, Caroline Katherine.
"Although she was just starting her life, none of us could be any happier that she was able to live her dreams: She had just started her dream job in Connecticut; she was able to marry the man of her dreams who she absolutely loved and she was adored by him," Macri said. "Her life was short but she died with a full heart." - Melanie Lefkowitz
This profile was originally published in 2001/2002
On Katherine McGarry- Noack's wedding day, the smile in her eyes said it all. Even her young nephews called her a princess because they thought she looked like Cinderella at the ball. Her white, sleeveless, silk, V-neck dress and perfectly styled blond hair under her netted veil were no match for the warmth that came from within that day.
"She definitely enjoyed her wedding. She loved every moment of it," her sister, Ellen Macri, said.
The wedding last April at Roslyn Claremont Hotel captured a young life in her prime. By early September, McGarry-Noack, 30, had landed a job at a financial information company, Telekurs, in Stamford, Conn. She was madly in love and happily married to her new husband, Brad Noack, and they were comfortably settled in their condo in Hoboken, N.J.
On Sept. 11, McGarry- Noack was attending a seminar on the 106th floor of Tower One when the plane hit. Her husband was at his desk on the 37th floor and got out safely. During the next few terrorizing hours, he stood outside, waiting for his bride. The first telepage from McGarry-Noack to her husband said she was trying to get out and that she was OK. By the time the second page came, her message said she was trapped and that she didn't think she would make it. She messaged him that she loved him and to tell her family she loved them, too.
McGarry-Noack's parents still live in North Merrick, where they raised their family. After graduating from Sacred Heart Academy, Katie, as the family calls her, graduated from St. John's University in Jamaica.
Macri described her sister as "a pistol." "She was a real go-getter," she said, "a very happy and a very generous person."
McGarry-Noack was also a caring aunt, who thought nothing of picking up Macri's kids and taking them to a movie or to play a round of miniature golf.
The Sunday before she died, McGarry-Noack gave her sister, who was 7 months pregnant, a pink layette for the new baby. On Nov. 11, little Caroline came home from the hospital wearing her aunt's special gift. -- Stacey Altherr
September 11, 2011, Newsday, 9/11 Anniversary: A decade later, Long Island Remembers,
Martin Lizzul
Age: 31
Employer: Kestrel Technologies
Place of death: Tower One
Community: Dix Hills
County: Suffolk
About Martin Lizzul
Martin Lizzul, 31, of Manhattan, originally from Dix Hills, worked for Kestrel Technologies, which supplied software to Cantor Fitzgerald. He was working mornings in the brokerage firm to help with the software.
She lost her only son, but Julia Lizzul of Dix Hills gained the love of mothers united by the tragedy.
They meet every week, for bridge games. They travel. "Nobody knows how we feel except us. It's such a comfort to be with these ladies," she said.
For around seven years, Martin Lizzul's friends held a golf memorial for him, but some moved away and "life went on for them," she said.
"Some of my friends still see their son's friends, but I don't want to see them. It just reminds me of what I'm missing. They come with their wives now and their kids and I just feel, 'Where's my boy?'
"You go on because you must. You wake up and you're breathing and you must go on. You have your other children and grandchildren so you need to be there for them."
She lives with her daughter Dana Lizzul, near her eldest, Susan, who is married with two sons.
Dana Lizzul said of her brother: "He was definitely my dad's favorite and growing up I didn't like that so much. After this happened, I thought, you know what? He's my favorite too."
Lizzul loved sports, and played on many teams growing up, his mother said. "He was everybody's best friend. He had a very droll, dry sense of humor ... My husband used to say, 'How did we ever get such a kid?' "
She had always considered herself lucky. "I had a wonderful husband and we had these three great kids," she said. "When this happened, I was just so devastated and my husband never got over it." He died in 2004.
Lizzul had been married only three months when he died. His family is still in touch with his wife, exchanging Christmas and birthday gifts. Two years ago, she remarried and has a child.
"It's painful," his mother said, "but I want her to be happy. She was only 26 years old." - Carol Polsky
This profile was originally published in 2001/2002
Martin Lizzul's family called each other every week and still celebrated each other's 30-plus birthdays by singing "Happy Birthday," blowing out candles and eating cake.
"One of the closest families I ever knew," said his brother-in-law, Tom Lauria, who was best man at Lizzul's wedding to Jeannie Lucido in June.
An employee of Kestrel Technology, Lizzul, 31, was often at Cantor Fitzgerald's World Trade Center offices. In the mornings he was there helping bond traders use his company's software. In the afternoons he headed back to his office on Broadway.
On Sept. 11, as his family watched the terrorist attacks unfold on television, they tried ringing his office telephone. They tried his cell phone. They never reached him. One of the last things they know he did was send an e-mail to a co-worker at 8:41 a.m.
As the youngest of three children, and the only son, Lizzul grew up in Dix Hills with a love for competitive sports, especially baseball. But he also had a gentle and thoughtful side, remembering everyone's birthday and never missing a chance to spend a holiday with family, said his sister Susan Lauria of Dix Hills.
Although they are devastated by his death, his family said they believe he is still with them. "We have seen signs of him from the other side," Lauria said of the lights that often flicker in his parents' house and the dreams some have of him. In addition to his wife and sister, Lizzul is survived by his parents, Victor and Julia Lizzul, sister Dana Lizzul, and nephews Stephen and James Lauria, all of Dix Hills. - Hoa Nguyen
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