The Bells of Remembrance Project began as an idea for a friend’s memorial and evolved into a memorial for the thousands of people who lost their lives on the Sept. 11, 2001 assaults on the United States.
On Sept. 13, when Brother David Schlatter, O.F.M., was returning to the Franciscan Center in Wilmington, DE, after attending the wake services for Fr. Mychal Judge, O.F.M., he had the desire to do something that would be a memorial for his friend of 33 years. Fr. Judge, a Franciscan Friar of Holy Name Province, also was chaplain for the New York City Fire Department and the first person to be killed on Sept. 11. But more personally, he was Br. Schlatter’s mentor.
“When I was asked to be chaplain for the city of Wilmington Fire Department nine years ago, he was the first person I contacted to seek his counsel,” said Br. Schlatter. “As I was returning home on the train that evening [Sept. 13] from New York City, I knew I personally had to do something to honor the memory of those who had died and offer some consolation to those who had begun to live with, and who would forever live with, the overwhelmingly sad aftermath of this horrible tragedy.
“At The Franciscan Center where I work, we include the tolling of bells in the annual Memorial Services we conduct for various bereavement groups in Wilmington and for the city of Wilmington Fire Department. That evening I began to think of how a bell might be brought to New York as a memorial to Fr. Mychal and the firefighters he so dearly loved and faithfully served. I hoped that in some way the bell might be incorporated into the ceremonies that were being planned,” said Br. Schlatter.
As time passed, what was originally envisioned at a tribute to Fr. Judge and the firefighters, grew into one with a much broader scope.
The Bells of Remembrance Project was organized and sponsored by Br. Schlatter, The Franciscan Center and MBNA America Bank of Wilmington, DE, to be part of the ceremonies and memorial services marking the first anniversary commemorations at New York City, Shanksville, PA, and the Pentagon. A fourth bell was added to the project to include the city of Wilmington.
Bells that once hung from lofty church steeples were refurbished by the McShane Foundry in Maryland to a like-new appearance. The largest bell scheduled for the New York ceremonies was originally cast in 1895 by the Van Duzen Bell Foundry of Cincinnati, OH. It weighs in at a hefty 5,000 lbs. and measures 50 in. high with a 63.5 in. diameter.
A second bell, cast by the Van Duzen Foundry in 1895 is slated for the Arlington, VA-site, weighs 3,500 lbs. and measures 44 in. high with a 57 in. diameter.
In 1903, the Meneely Bell Foundry of Troy, NY, cast the 2,800 lb. bell that will be located at the Shanksville, PA, ceremony site. This bell measures 39 in. high and has a diameter of 52.5 in.
The smallest of the Bells of Remembrance weighs 1,700 lbs. and measures 36 in. high with a diameter of 43 in. It was cast by the McShane Foundry in 1885 and will be part of the Wilmington ceremonies.
After acquiring the bells, the next objective of Br. Schlatter was to obtain trailers that would support the bells and the steel frame from which they would hang. He called on John Conner, sales manager, of C.C. & F.F. Keesler located in Prospect Park, PA, for help.
Conner provided the engineering for the trailers and Cross Country Trailer Mfg. in Greene, NY, built them. They were later painted by Keesler and sent to McShane where the bells were permanently mounted and readied for transport.
“Keesler donated the engineering and painting of the trailers and was pleased to be a part of this project,” said Conner of Keesler’s involvement.
The problem of transporting the bells to various sites was solved by Bayshore Ford of New Castle, DE, who provided Br. Schlatter with a 2002 F350 diesel truck. It will take the trailered bells one at a time to each designated memorial site.
On Sept. 11, the stationary bells will be manually rung at 10-second intervals by surviving family members, friends and co-workers of those who died, as well as public officials and local volunteers who had assisted in the relief, rescue and recovery efforts.
In New York the tolling of the Van Duzen bell will begin at 8:47 a.m. and will continue 7.8 hours for the 2,823 fatalities.
In Arlington, VA, the pealing will begin at 9:38 a.m. for 30.6 minutes. The bell ringing in Shanksville, PA, will begin at 10:06 a.m. and last for 6.6 minutes.
The fourth bell in Wilmington will begin chiming at 8:47 a.m. and ring for 8.46 hours in honor of all the Sept. 11 victims. All the bells at the various sites will toll in unison beginning at 10:06 a.m. and continue for approximately three minutes.
Later in the fall, this bell will be used during memorial services in Washington, D.C. to honor those firefighters who have died during the past year in the line of duty.
“The Bells of Remembrance is a simple yet fitting and solemn way to reverently honor the memory of all those who died on Sept. 11, 2001, at each of the sites where the ground is now forever hallowed because of the lives of those who perished,” Br. Schlatter said of his desire to have a memorial for a friend that became a greater reality.
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