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Volunteers help set up massive 9/11 memorial in Land O’Lakes

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Published  September 7, 2024 1:07pm EDT
Pasco County
FOX 13 News

9/11 memorial display in Land O' Lakes

Regina Gonzalez reports.

LAND O' LAKES, Fla. - As the sun brightened the fields of the Rosebud Continuum in Land O’Lakes on Saturday morning, local volunteers began organizing and placing 2,977 placards in the grass - with a very specific layout to follow.

"The idea behind the layout, is if someone comes and visits this memorial, and they lost a loved one on that terrible day, we could literally guide them to which row their loved one is," explained Toni Hedstrom, creator of FireWatch Magazine. "The colors are all coordinated for each of the towers, for each of the airlines, and then the Pentagon as well."

The result was a massive American flag made up of the individual names of each victim killed in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

This special remembrance was made possible with the help of the Continuum, the American Legion, Firewatch Magazine, and Learn and Serve Tampa. But, it started as a school project at Randall Middle School where Kristy Verdi was a teacher.

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Now she's the founder of Learn & Serve Tampa, an organization that gets children out in the community to accomplish special acts of service like this.

"What I've tried to do is now engage a variety different schools," Verdi said. "So I invited schools all around this area to participate. I had a few that took me up on it, and those students in class made biographies, and so those biographies will go on the back of these placards."

Many of these kids weren't even born when that fateful day changed the lives of Americans forever, but they're eager to learn about it, and all that came after.

"I think it's important for kids to understand why they take their shoes off at the airport, about the War on Terror. It's important," Verdi said.

"It's really meaningful to help like people remember that happened," said Land O' Lakes High School student Lucia Guedez. "Respect the people who lost their lives and just remember the event so that we don't forget it."

If you missed it today, guests will be allowed to visit the memorial throughout the week at the Rosebud Continuum.

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