Bell to be Rung Annually during National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend
The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Bell of Remembrance is directly across from the 9/11 To Lift a Nation Memorial in Memorial Park. Having made its NFFF debut in 2022, the bell is rung each year during the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend in honor of all fallen firefighters.
The bell is from the Bells of Remembrance Project established by Fr. Dave Schlatter, a friar and fire chaplain, as an ongoing traveling memorial for those who died on September 11, 2001. Fr. Schlatter began the project to honor his friend and mentor, Fr. Mychal Judge. Fr. Judge was the City of New York Fire Department (FDNY) chaplain, and he was the first official fatality caused by the attacks on September 11th.
Fr. Schlatter donated the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Bell of Remembrance to NFFF in 2022. Other bells from the Bells of Remembrance were donated to the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and the St. Rose of Lima Church in Newtown, Connecticut, to honor Sandy Hook Elementary School victims.
