An Evolving Tribute: Connecticut’s 9/11 Memorial

Connecticut’s 9/11 Living Memorial is located at the Sherwood Island State Park in Westport in the southwestern part of the state. Landscape architect Shavaun Towers created the memorial in 2002 funded by the state of Connecticut, non-profit organizations, private companies and citizens, as well grants from the USDA Forest Service. The memorial pays homage to the 161 victims with ties to Connecticut who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. This site is unique as a ‘Living Memorial’ and provides a “reflective place that emphasizes the renewing qualities of plant materials and the healing serenity of the sea” for the community, according to the park’s on-site description. As a state park, Sherwood Island is open to the public and bustling with families and beach-goers. Set on a peninsula, however, the memorial is meant to supply an intimate setting for remembrance. According to park supervisor John Guglielmoni, many visitors today do not come to the park with the intention of going to the memorial, but they often end up stopping by. “They have an opportunity to remember where they were [on 9/11] and reflect on what’s brought us to this moment where we are now” Guglielmoni said.

While there are are few other 9/11 tributes in Connecticut, Sherwood Island’s Living Memorial remains the state’s official site, a unique attribution that not many states in the northeast give to just one memorial. The park continues to annually host commemoration events and add supplemental tributes over the years. For the 10th anniversary in 2011, a separate sculpture, “Sanctuary,” built by David Boyajian and Matt Rink was commissioned for the park’s main pavilion as a compliment to the Living Memorial. The “Sanctuary” sculpture also includes engraved names of the Connecticut victims. On the 20th anniversary, for the first time the park hosted the “CT United Ride”, a fundraising event for 9/11 first responders. The park does not have any plans to build additional memorials at this time, according to Guglielmoni. Their main focus will be to preserve the existing site for those that it means so much to.

The Living Memorial sits on a peninsula at the park and provides a quiet place for remembrance. Connecticut resident Andy Bachman, who was at the World Trade Center on 9/11, says the memorial has an “understated respect” but “every time you walk by it, you think about that day.”

Sherwood Island State Park was chosen as Connecticut’s official 9/11 memorial site because on a clear day, downtown Manhattan is visible from the shore and many gathered here in the days after the attacks to watch the smoke from the fallen towers.

Connecticut artists David Boyajian and Matt Rink created the “Sanctuary” sculpture at Sherwood Island State Park for the 10th anniversary of 9/11 after they won a competition sponsored by the state’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

The “Sanctuary” sculpture is crafted from shards of metal recovered from the Twin Towers. Boyajian and Rink welded the metal into ten petals representing each year that had passed since the 10th anniversary.