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About 80 people gathered around the Statue of Liberty on Alki Sept. 11 to pay their respects to fallen police and firefighters who lost their lives 10 years ago while rescuing folks trapped in the Twin Towers and Pentagon. Many lit candles at 7:00 p.m. and sang patriotic songs. Some had visited the statue following the tragedy 10 years ago. A group of New York City transplants now living in the Seattle area clustered together and told the West Seattle Herald "We knew we'd find each other" even though they were strangers until then.

The event was organized by the SW Seattle Historical Society.

Earlier in the day people came with cards, flowers and other items to leave at the base of the statue in tribute to the lives lost. The West Seattle Herald spoke to some of them.

Jill and Bill Wunch

“Were here because we were here ten years ago, where we came, we don’t know why, we just did. The Statue of Liberty is as close as we can get at this point in time and being here just seems right. I have friends living in New York at the time and just remember talking to them and hearing the fear of terror in their voices as they were right there watching.”

Gerti Zorer

“its a way for us to remember what happened that day so we don’t forget for the lives that were lost. we like to come down and see and to get that overwhelming feeling being here."

Judy Puckett, a former United Airlines Flight Attendant

“I’m here to remember my sister flight attendants from United, I flew with a couple of them that were on Flight 93 and I had a flight that was going nonstop from Seattle to New York on the tenth of September and I would come back on the eleventh but I gave that trip away to one of my friends because I wanted to go on a vacation with my husband to Europe and so we were in Europe when it happen. Just a loss of all people that were involved brings me to my knees and I had to come down here and write my memories and put it here because this is the closest thing I can come to right now, I am retired from United and this is the closest I can come to being near what resembles something of New York to me and the pin that I wear when on my next flight when I went back to New York, I bought this pin at Ground Zero and so I wear it ever year at this time and its like being able to touch them again and have the feelings that their still remembered and they’re still people and there still people who have touched our hearts in some way. This is my way of doing it and saying hello and goodbye again.”

Photos and material for this story were added by David Rosen.