Traveling 9/11 exhibit coming to Taftville for firefighters convention
Norwich — One tractor-trailer truck will stand out among the dozens of firetrucks that will converge on Taftville in September for the 134th annual Connecticut State Firefighters Convention: the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation 9/11 mobile exhibit.
The exterior of the mobile exhibit depicts the American flag and New York firefighters attempting to hose down the burning World Trade Center towers on Sept. 11, 2001. The trailer carries artifacts from ground zero in New York and is staffed by New York City firefighters who responded to the World Trade Center after terrorists intentionally crashed two commercial airplanes into the buildings, causing them to collapse.
The exhibit will be open to the public free of charge Saturday, Sept. 16, and Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017, with hours and an exact location to be determined, said Gregory Schlough, chairman of the convention and parade committee.
“It's very, very exciting to have that," Schlough said Friday. “It will be a big attraction to the event. You're taking the 9/11 memorial in New York City, on a smaller scale, and bringing it to eastern Connecticut.”
Schlough credited convention committee member Adam Miclette for proposing the idea of bringing the exhibit to the convention and for securing the $10,000 sponsorship needed.
Miclette, chairman of the event's souvenir and memorabilia committee, secured partial sponsorships from the Hebron Lions Club and Stanley Tools, but when he approached All Waste Inc. of Hartford, the company offered to provide the full $10,000 funding necessary.
“We, the 134th Annual CT State Firefighters Association Convention & Parade Committee, wish to again extend our special thanks to All Waste for making this exhibit possible for the public to see,” Schlough wrote in a news release announcing what he expects will be the top attraction at the event.
The Taftville Volunteer Fire Department is hosting the statewide convention and parade as part of its centennial celebration. The event is expected to bring hundreds of firefighters from departments throughout the state for the two-day convention and parade through village streets.
Schlough said he plans to contact local schools soon to alert them of the 9/11 exhibit in the hopes they can incorporate a visit into civics and history lessons.
“For anyone under 16, this is history,” Schlough said.
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