Aaronson's Alert

I recently attended the September 11th Remembrance Ceremony presented by the Fire Chief’s Association of Palm Beach County (PBC) held in Wellington. In addition to the ceremony there was a Parade of Heroes and dedication of the village’s Patriot Memorial. The memorial includes one of the largest sections of steel salvaged from the collapsed World Trade Center as well as an eternal flame, fountain and glass panels inscribed with the names of the victims of 9/11.

As beautiful as the memorial is, the real sight to behold that day was the participation of the several hundred PBC residents that were there and the compelling keynote speaker, retired New York City Firefighter Ron Parker. I cannot quite put into words the experience I had at this most profound and beautiful event and I could tell by the stillness of the crowd as he spoke I was not alone in my feelings. Ron, now a resident of West Palm Beach, lost 45 friends in the tragedy. He was on vacation that Sept. 11th, but rushed back to work to spend the next three months on rescue and recovery at a site he said resembled "20 stories of pickup sticks." He spoke about his first reaction. How did a building, which took a full minute to ride up in a freight elevator, collapse in just 10 seconds?

A reoccurring theme in his presentation was that of thankfulness. He received endless thanks and prayers from New Yorkers and from a nation searching for their loved ones. He also thanked and encouraged participants to thank the servicemen and women - Police, Fire and Military- from across the country who descended on Ground Zero to help save every last soul possible. Some came from our very own County.

With Veterans Day, Thanksgiving and the holiday season fast approaching, I hope we pause to give thanks to our service people on every level. They have given so much and many have lost what we take for granted every day.

I was deeply moved. I wanted to share my experience with all of my constituents so I asked PBC TV to extend its replays of the ceremony through November. The channel is available on Comcast Cable Channel 20 and can also be seen via the Internet on the county’s website, www.pbcgov.com, by clicking on “Ch 20 Live.”

I urge you to tune in or log on for one of the upcoming replays:

• Saturday, Oct. 8 – 3 p.m.
• Monday, Oct. 10 (Columbus Day) – 3 p.m.
• Saturday, Oct. 29 – 11:30 a.m.
• Friday, Nov. 11 (Veterans Day) – 7:30 p.m.
• Thursday, Nov. 17 – 7:00 p.m.

As always, I invite your comments on any issue of interest to you.  As your Commissioner, I am here to help you.  You may write me at 301 N. Olive Ave., West Palm Beach, 33401 or call my staff at 276-1310 or toll free at 877-930-2205.  My email address is:  baaronso@pbcgov.org.