7th moment of silence at Ground Zero ceremony will honor victims of 9/11-related illnesses
It has been 25 years since the terror attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, but the struggles of first responders continue as many are still getting sick and dying from 9/11-related illnesses decades later.
At this year's 9/11 ceremony, there will be a special seventh moment of silence for those who came to save lives and wound up becoming victims, too.
The first six recognize when the World Trade Center towers were struck and when each fell, the attack at the Pentagon and crash of United Airlines Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
NYPD Officer Jimmy Betso is among the thousands who died after breathing in the toxic air at Ground Zero, part of a tireless effort by so many who toiled despite the unseen dangers lurking in the dust. He spent weeks working on the pile following the attacks.
"It makes me so proud that my father, like all the other first responders on that day, you know, they made an oath to the city. They came down here to do everything that they could for the survivors," daughter Leah Betso said.
Years later, he would become a victim himself.
"In 2013, he was diagnosed with glioblastoma, which is a rare, terminal brain cancer," Leah Betso said. "He fought hard for another two years, and then unfortunately died in 2015, right after my freshman year of college."
After the second tower fell, firefighter John Sorrentino marched into the chaos in search of survivors and heroes who didn't flinch in the face of the horrors of the day and gave their last full measure.
"We lost eight guys from my firehouse that day. All six guys who were on the Ladder 118 truck and two other guys," he said. "Our battalion where we work, I think it was close to 30 guys, and I probably lost 60 or 70 friends."
After 25 years, it's a history that has to be taught to a new generation that was not alive on that day, but the message of hope and rebirth does stretch across generations.
Gianna Romano and Ian Dannenfelser are incoming freshmen at Penn State, both awarded scholarships from the Barasch and McGarry Charitable Foundation. Romano's grandmother Maria Errico worked at Aon and died three years ago from 9/11-related gastric cancer.
"Everyone around her loved her. She was caring, joyful," she said. "I watched her go from a healthy, lively person to just a rapid decline, and it was really sad."
Dannenfelser's grandfather Gene Dannenfelser was a lifelong firefighter who passed away in 2017.
"I always looked up to him as a hero, and that definitely hasn't changed," Ian Dannenfelser said. "It definitely was not easy because I feel like it was just hard to put into words. Like, he battled lung cancer, beat it at one point, and then a year later it came back."
Both Romano and Dannenfelser worry that younger generations are losing sight of the words "Never Forget."
"Going through the school system and getting older, I feel it's definitely concerning how it's not being taught as much and how people aren't remembering," Dannenfelser said.
This year, there will be one more moment to pause, reflect and be reminded that for thousands, the battle for survival continues.
"Every single day, people are being diagnosed. Every single day, people are unfortunately dying," Betso said.
