Photo Credit: Lori Odishoo

As a nation, we were all impacted during the horrible attack on April 19th, 1995 when Timothy McVey bombed the Murrah Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.  Just six short years later, many of us watched in horror as the Twin Towers fell to terror attacks.  As this anniversary nears, let us honor the men and women who selflessly gave their time, lives, and support.

I found this fantastic article written by, Robert Mayer who is a reporter for the East Hampton Portland Patch.  With his permission, I am posting it here so that we can all join in nationwide to help show our support.

Please let me know if you will be joining in, I would love for you to share your pictures. I know my neighborhood will be joining and I look forward to showing off the photo’s.

Ex-Firefighter Aims To Spark National 9/11 Candle Memorial

By Robert Mayer

Originally posted: August 14th, 2011, East Hampton Portland Patch

On the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Lori Odishoo of Berlin wants all of us to pay tribute to those who lost their lives by lighting three candles.

Lori Odishoo of Berlin wasn’t prepared for what she saw when she and her husband, Matt, drove to New York City a few days after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center to pay their respects.

“Words can’t express what I felt looking at it. There was dust everywhere. It was so overwhelming,” Odishoo, a former firefighter and current 911 dispatcher in Manchester, said recently. “We stopped at a few fire stations to pay our respects and it is hard to tell you how the firemen looked. They were almost haunted. There was such sorrow and pain in their eyes, it was hard to take.

“I wish I could be elegant with my words, but as I look back I still choke up trying to describe what we saw.”

Matt, the fire marshal and a firefighter in Berlin, and Lori had to drive through a defacto war zone to reach rubble-strewn lower Manhattan that day.

“We had to keep going through these checkpoints because the area was still very fluid,” Lori said. “We kept going and going and finally we were staring at what was left of the World Trade Center. We never expected to get there, but there we were in all the dust and debris.”

The couple was deeply affected by the post-apocalyptic scene, and Lori vowed to never forget the people who died or suffered as a result of the attacks. Every year since the attacks, she places three candles (red, white and blue) at the bottom of her driveway at dusk on Sept. 11. Some of her friends and neighbors have done it in years past, but this year, Lori wants to start a national movement to remember those affected by 9/11, and she wants your help.

“With this being the 10th anniversary, my goal is to get everybody to (do it),” Lori Odishoo said. “The first anniversary, some people did it. And I do it every year to make sure we remember,” she said. “But (this year) I want everybody to do it. I want the whole town to do it. I want the state to do it, and I want everyone in the country to do it.”

Lori Odishoo has started a Facebook page titled 9/11 10th Anniversary Candle Memorial to rally people across the country to the cause, and so far has 613 people listed as “attending” the candle “event.” People can also leave their memories and thoughts of Sept. 11 on the page’s wall.

The red candle signifies firefighters and EMS personnel. The white candle stands for civilian lives lost, and the blue is for police and military.

“This may not catch on all over, but (Berlin) is pretty great and I hope everyone will join us in remembering those who were affected by the tragedy.”

I encorage everyone to join in on this great Candles For A Cause Memorial.  I would also like to thank Lori Odishoo and Robert Mayer for sharing this great story and idea.