Event Marks 11th Anniversary
Museum Admission Waived For First Responders and Their Families All Day On Sept. 11
The Otero County Fire Fighters Association will hold their annual September 11th Memorial Ceremony on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2012 at the New Mexico Museum of Space History in Alamogordo. The ceremony begins with a slide show starting at 7:30 pm. The formal program will start at 8 pm. The ceremony is free to the public.
In conjunction with the Memorial Ceremony, the Museum will offer free admission to active and retired civilian or military First Responders and their families all day on Sept. 11. “We are honored that the Otero County Fire Fighters Association has chosen us to be part of this ceremony each year and in appreciation of their service, we will have the museum open free to First Responders and their families all day. Simply show your identification to our museum receptionist to be admitted,” said Museum Executive Director Chris Orwoll. Additionally, the Museum will be open late that evening, from 5:00 pm to 7:30 pm, with free admission to all planning to attend the ceremony.
The evening’s Memorial Program will include a fire and police turnout ceremony, candle lighting and the symbolic lighting of the twin towers on the museum building. The Holloman Honor Guard will present flags for the fire and police officers who have died in the line of duty in Otero County. Members of the Alamogordo High School Choir will provide music and area resident William Meagher will play the bagpipes.
The guest speaker is Retired Lieutenant William Dement from the New York Police Department. As a patrol Sergeant in Manhattan, Sergeant Dement was the third response vehicle to the first World Trade Center bombing in 1991.He rescued people from a smoke-filled third floor before taking over hospital operations at St. Vincent’s Hospital where 1,000 victims were brought and in which 5 died.
On September 11, 2001, Dement was on vacation in Ruidoso where he was building his retirement home. After learning of the attacks, he drove 2100 miles in 2 days to New York City to respond to the disaster.
Dement spent four months sifting through debris of the World Trade Center site after the attacks of Sept 11, 2001. He worked a 12-hour tour at the World Trade Center on Sept 14, 2001, before spending three months on recovery and investigative work at the Fresh Kills landfill on Staten Island, New York, where debris was transported from the site.
The Memorial Ceremony is free to the public. Parking will be in the lot just above the IMAX Theater.
The public is invited to join in this solemn affair to commemorate the events on this day in 2001 when America and freedom were attacked on our home soil and so many heroes; fire, police and civilian alike came together to save tens of thousands of lives.
The New Mexico Museum of Space History is a division of the NM Department of Cultural Affairs. For more information, call 575-437-2840 or toll free 1-877-333-6589 or visit the website at www.nmspacemuseum.org.
Lt. Dement BIO:
William F. Dement is a retired Lieutenant Narcotics Squad Commander, NYPD.
He served 20 years in the NYPD as a Fugitive Warrant Squad investigator in Brooklyn, a Patrol Sergeant in Manhattan, as a Policy Analyst for the Police Commissioner, Patrol Sergeant, Gang Investigator, and Burglary Squad Sergeant in Staten Island, Internal Affairs Bureau Investigating Sergeant, and Lieutenant Platoon Commander and Operations Lieutenant in Staten Island before being assigned to Narcotics.
As a patrol Sergeant in Manhattan, Sergeant Dement was the third response vehicle to the first World Trade Center bombing in 1991.He rescued people from a smoke-filled third floor before taking over hospital operations at St. Vincents Hospital where 1,000 victims were brought and in which 5 died.
On September 11th, he was on vacation in Ruidoso building his retirement home. He drove 2100 miles in 2 days to New York City to respond to the disaster. He spent 4 months at Ground Zero and the Fresh Kills landfill supervising the rescue and recovery operations.
He taught high school history for three years before the after effects of 9/11 left him with various illnesses; WTC cough, asthma, lead and aluminum heavy metal poisoning, pre-cancer of the esophagus and digestive illnesses, and Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea.
He published a book on his experience on and following 9/11 called “Delay, Deny, Hope they Die.” It is available on line at Amazon and on Kindle as well as Barnes and Noble.
He is a frequent columnist in sports and Op-Ed in the Ruidoso News. He has an MS in Management from NYU, an MA Education from Wagner College, and a BA in Government from John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
He lives in Ruidoso. His wife, Barbara is an RN at Lincoln County Medical Center. They have a 14 year old son, Ryan who is a freshman at New Mexico Military Institute who wants to serve the country upon graduating, and an 11 year old daughter, Jenna.
Lt. Dement appears without compensation. He travels with one purpose in mind, “So We May Never Forget”.