Western Overlook to be dedicated at Flight 93 National Memorial
Aug. 22—A new project at the Flight 93 National Memorial will be finished in the coming weeks.
Work on the Western Overlook is being completed and a dedication ceremony is planned for Sept. 9 after the annual Heroes' Walk, said Friends of Flight 93 executive director Donna Gibson. The renovated area along a trail will be welcoming to visitors and allow them to be learn more about the space where families took in the Sept. 11, 2001 crash site.
"The walkers will get the first view of this new feature," she said.
There will be benches and extra space for park rangers to discuss with visitors the overlook's importance. United Flight 93 crashed in the Somerset County field during coordinated terrorist attacks. The Stonycreek site honors the 40 passengers and crew members aboard the airplane, who authorities believe took a vote and fought back against their hijackers after learning of three other plane crashes that morning in New York City and at the Pentagon.
Work on the memorial started in the years afterwards and a trail was built connecting two parts of it, passing by the overlook. In the days after the crash, the site grew into a small memorial with bouquets of flowers and photographs, while authorities investigated feet away.
"The Western Overlook is part of the landscape of that memorial that is critically important to the history of the Flight 93 story," said park superintendent Stephen Clark. "That's why we hold that area in such high regard."
Transforming the spot into one with benches, informational signs and a pollinator garden means visitors will get to learn about the role it played in the aftermath of the crash with the help of knowledgeable rangers and volunteer ambassadors, he said.
Donations paid for the project. Members of an Army Reserves unit based in Reading have been working on it for about a month, Clark said.
The annual Heroes' Walk serves as a fundraiser for various projects at the memorial site. Gibson said the group's next goal is to raise at least $100,000 to replace some trees planted in groves that have not flourished because of weather and drainage issues, among other things.
"Every year we pick a project here at the memorial and, with our walk, we attempt to raise the funds that are necessary to support that project," she said.
Registration for the walk ends Monday. The sponsorship deadline is Friday. Visit flight93friends.org/heroes-walk to register. The walk starts at 10:03 a.m. Sept. 9 and the cost is $30 for adults, $15 for children 13 to 17 years old and $10 for children 10 and younger. More details are available at flight93friends.org/events.
Anyone who wants to contribute toward the trees can do so at flight93friends.org/donate or by mail at Friends of Flight 93 National Memorial, P.O. Box 911, Shanksville, PA 15560 and direct the donation to "memorial groves."
Renatta Signorini is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Renatta by email at rsignorini@triblive.com or via Twitter .
