Proposed Fulton County 9/11 Memorial Eight Sides Which Means Eternity The Fulton County memorial to the lives lost in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks has a preliminary design to go along with increasing fund-raising support.

“Right now we’re still in the preliminary design phase, because we have yet to choose a site in cooperation with the Fulton County Fair board out at the fairgrounds,” said Kevin Nelson, a member of the Wauseon Fire Department 9-11 memorial committee.

The design, of Nelson’s creation, is slated to be an octagonal building with four entrances. The outer walls will be divided into four sections, each memorializing the lives of the four services that lost members in the attacks.

“There will be one for fire, one for EMS, one for law enforcement, and one for military,” said Nelson.

In the center will be the focal point: a 3,000-pound piece of steel from the ruins of the World Trade Center in New York City.

“In the center will be the main memorial, for those civilians that died in the World Trade Center, at the Pentagon, and on Flight 93 in Pennsylvania,” said Nelson.

WTC Artifact’s Journey

The 20-foot-long piece of steel arrived in Wauseon, Friday, June 17. It is part of a program by the New York and New Jersey Port Authority that grants artifacts from the World Trade Center to fire, police, and EMS departments around the country for memorial and educational purposes.

The steel was transported by several members of the Wauseon Fire Department. Along the way, they made several stops to display the artifact.

A ceremony was held in Wauseon to mark the arrival of the artifact.

The beam was displayed at several locations in Archbold during the Carp Festival.

Fund-Raising

Fund-raising for construction of the memorial also has started to pick up in pace.

“We’ve had several companies say they’ll help us in whatever way they can,” said Nelson. “We’ve also got a big fund-raiser planned for the end of August in Wauseon.”

The fund-raising is needed because federal law prohibits the use of public funds for the creation of a memorial using artifacts given out by the New York-New Jersey Port Authorities.

The memorial is slated to be ready to receive the public by Sept. 11, 2012.

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Mishaps are like knives, that either serve us or cut us, as we grasp them by the blade or the handle.–James Russell Lowell Graphic courtesy Wauseon Fire Department 9-11 Memorial Committee