9/11 Families - Pentagon National Memorial

Pentagon National Memorial

Pentagon Memorial Mission Statement:
The Pentagon Memorial is  designed so that the nation may remember 
and reflect on the events that  occurred on September 11, 2001.

"The memorial should instill the ideas that patriotism is a moral duty, 
that freedom  comes at a price, and that the victims of this attack 
have paid the ultimate price...We challenge you to create a memorial 
that translates this terrible  tragedy into a place of solace, peace, 
and healing." - Family Statement, The  Pentagon Memorial Family 
Steering Committee

What is being built? :
On September 11,  2001, terrorists crashed Flight 77 into the 
Pentagon, killing the 59 passengers  on board the aircraft and 125 
military and civilian personnel who were working  inside the Pentagon.  
Shortly after the attack, the United States Congress  authorized the 
Secretary of Defense to create a permanent memorial on the grounds 
of the Pentagon. 
   
The Pentagon Memorial park consists of 184  memorial units, each of 
which are dedicated to an individual victim by its  unique placement 
within the collective field. The field is organized  according to a timeline 
of the victims’ ages, spanning from the youngest to the  oldest. Each 
memorial unit is located on its respective age line—thin  metal strips 
that cross the memorial park. The “terrazzo” (or faux-marble flooring) 
finish of each memorial unit rises  dramatically from the ground on one 
end, and on the other end, hovers over a  small pool of lighted water 
in the surrounding gravel field of the park. Each unit has a specific 
direction to distinguish victims on board Flight 77 from victims within 
the Pentagon. The memorial units representing the 59  lives lost on 
Flight 77 face so that when reading the name of the victim  to whom 
that unit is dedicated, the visitor to the memorial park faces the sky. 
When standing at a memorial unit dedicated to a victim who was inside  
the Pentagon, the visitor will see the victim’s name and the Pentagon 
in the same view. The simple but elegant memorial units are at once 
a glowing light pool, a cantilevered bench and a place for permanent 
inscription of each victim’s name. The interplay between the leaves 
of surrounding maple trees, light, bark, footpath gravel, grasses, water  
and the senses provides an experience in the park that is touching 
and moving, one that creates a place of peace and remembrance, and 
allows for individual interpretation by each visitor. 

Timeline:
- On September  11, 2001, terrorists crashed Flight 77 into the 
  Pentagon, killing the 59  passengers on board the aircraft and 125 
  military and civilian personnel who  were working inside the Pentagon.
- Jan. 23, 2002:  Defense officials have appropriated $270,000 for 
  administration and planning of  the public Pentagon memorial.
- June 11, 2002: Exterior reconstruction is completed on  the 
  Pentagon.  At a small ceremony marking the progress, officials 
  announce the design competition for the Pentagon Memorial.
- March 3, 2003: Keith Kaseman and Julie Beckman, two young New York 
  architects, were chosen to design the Pentagon Memorial. More than 
  1,000 entries were submitted.
- March 3, 2005: In Pevely, Missouri, the first stainless-steel prototype 
  that will be used for the 184 benches was made and tested for flaws.
- May 9, 2006: Tom Heidenberger and five other riders arrive at the 
  Pentagon, after a 33-day cross-county bike ride, the "Airline Ride  
  Across America."  The bike ride, started by Heidenberger to raise 
  money for the September 11 memorial funds, began in Los Angeles on 
  April 2, 2006. Heidenberger's wife, Michele, died aboard Flight 77.
- June 15, 2006: Groundbreaking ceremony for the memorial. Officials 
  unveil a marker for the September 11 Pentagon memorial.
- June 2007: Bench production begins in Pevely, Missouri with three to 
  four 1100-pound stainless steel castings produced each week. 
- August 2007: First 14-foot bench arrives in Elk Grove Village, Illinois  
  at the Bucthel Metal Finishing Corp., where the memorial bench was 
  polished.

Significant Aspects of the Memorial:
- To commemorate  the events of September 11, 2001 every year, an 
  American flag is placed on the  side of the Pentagon which was hit by 
  Flight 77.  This section is also lit up at night in blue  lights as a form 
  of tribute.
- The Memorial will be free and open to the public  seven days a week. 
  Groups and individuals are welcome in the Memorial each day but 
  guided tours are not offered; the Memorial is meant to be experienced 
  on a more personal level.
- Washington Headquarters  Service (WHS) holds overall responsibility 
  for the project, with Pentagon  Renovation & Construction Program 
  Office (PENREN/C) serving as the construction agent.  
- Real Estate and Facilities  (RE&F) serves as the project manager to 
  obtain, manage and account for  funding as the project progresses.  
- Centex-Lee LLC was awarded  the design-build contract to complete 
  the Pentagon Memorial.

Location:
The Pentagon Memorial is located at 1 Rotary Road on the Pentagon 
Reservation in Arlington, Virginia.   The mailing address is:

Pentagon Memorial
ATTN: Pentagon Building Management Office 
Room 2E1040, Pentagon 
Washington, DC 20301-1155

Based on information from the Pentagon Memorial website as of 7/6/09.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

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