Rockland Community College Builds 9/11 Memorial Garden

Rockland Community College (RCC) is building a 9/11 Memorial Garden, whose centerpiece will be a sculpture created from steel artifacts from the World Trade Center. The public is invited to the Dedication Ceremony on September 11, 2012, the 11th anniversary.

The college received four steel I-beam fragments from the World Trade Center. These beams are being transformed into a steel and stone sculpture by Rockland artist . The garden will be located in a small grove of trees on campus, with the sculpture as the central feature. Original tiles created by local ceramic artist Cathy McErlean-Goddard, a poem by Rockland County’s Poet Laureate, RCC Professor , and inscribed bricks will all be permanent elements of the garden.  

The garden is designed to be a place of quiet reflection, to remember those who were lost and to honor first responders and those who study and work to make the future safer. With a donation of $100 to the RCC Foundation, a brick can be inscribed with a personal message and included in the garden. Funds raised through contributions will provide scholarships for students studying Fire Protection Technology, Emergency Medical Service, or Criminal Justice.

The 9/11 Memorial Garden was initiated by RCC President Dr. Cliff L. Wood and designed by Page Simon, professor of Art. Matterhorn Nursery is donating flowering trees, with local landscapers installing trees, plants and brick walkways under the leadership of Paul Trader of the Cornell Cooperative Extension.

Anyone interested in a personalized brick for the Dedication Ceremony on September 11, 2012, must place their order by July 11. Don Cairns, executive director of the RCC Foundation, can provide information about the bricks. He can be contacted at 845-574-4576 or dcairns@sunyrockland.edu