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Religion

Mass to remember 9/11 heroes

Retired New York City firefighters and members of the Knights of Columbus will offer a chance to grieve, and heal, in Holiday.

By EBONY WINDOM
Published September 10, 2005

It has been four years since terrorist attacks leveled the twin towers, yet Jim Schuppel still gets choked up.

Especially around this time of year.

Sunday marks the fourth anniversary of the day hijackers slammed four planes into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a plot of land in Pennsylvania.

For Schuppel, the emotional wounds are still fresh.

That's because for more than three decades, he served as a proud New York City firefighter. Schuppel had retired by Sept. 11, 2001. But the tragedy hit home because of the thousands who died that day, more than 300 were New York City firefighters.

"It's . . . a large scar in your chest," said Schuppel, 76, who lives in Tarpon Springs. "It takes a long time to heal. For some, it will never heal. We never want to forget that terrible day."

For the first time since the attacks, Sept. 11 falls on a Sunday. Some local churches will take the opportunity to pause and reflect.

St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Holiday will offer a special Mass.

Schuppel and local members of the Retired Firefighters of New York City and the Catholic fraternal organization Knights of Columbus will host it.

The Knights will arrive in their signature black tuxedos and red capes with swords at their sides. But Schuppel's group will wear their Sunday best because "we're all retired and our uniforms don't fit anymore," he said with a chuckle.

Current and retired firefighters are invited to attend, as is the public. A Pasco County Fire Rescue ladder truck will be parked outside.

St. Vincent de Paul's priest, the Rev. Robert Chabot, will offer a message and lead prayers.

John Reilly, a member of the Knights of Columbus, will show a hunk of rusted metal that came from one of the crumpled towers in New York. Some folks who see the metal tear up, he said. It's dirty. But shining it up would be a shame, the 67-year-old said, because "we feel the dirt on it could be somebody's ashes."

So the chunk of metal beam sits behind a glass case as a reminder.

Lunch will follow the Mass and offer a chance for folks to swap stories. The many former New Yorkers in the area include Reilly, who retired from the New York City Transit Authority and moved to Holiday.

Some of them know people who made it out of the World Trade Center in the nick of time.

Reilly knows a couple who should have closed on a mortgage at the World Trade Center that day. But they forgot an important document, so they jumped back on the subway. They later would discover that both buildings had collapsed.

Schuppel's voice cracks when he talks about the dozen funerals of fellow firefighters he attended.

"Just one horror story after another," Reilly says.

Orazio Cali, 85, has a unique tale.

For years he was an ultrasonic technician in New York City. He inspected the World Trade Center's foundation when the towers were being built.

Cali was watching the news when he learned of the terrorist attacks.

"I almost died when I saw that," he said. "I couldn't believe my eyes. I thought I was dreaming. . . . I was so proud to work on the World Trade Center. It was a beautiful building."

Cali, a member of the Knights of Columbus, has long since retired and calls Palm Harbor home. He still can't bring himself to return to New York and visit the spot where the towers once stood.

He plans to be at the Mass on Sunday. It's a step toward healing, he says.

"We believe in God," Cali says, "and we go to the Mass and wish that God blesses those who survived and pray for the souls of those who died."

Ebony Windom covers Religion news in Pasco County. She can be reached at 813 909-4609 or toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 4609. Her e-mail address is ewindom@sptimes.com

St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church offers a special Mass at 11 a.m. Sunday at 4843 Mile Stretch Road in Holiday. The Mass is open to the public. Lunch will follow at the church's Father Farrell Hall. Donations will be accepted. For information, call the church at (727) 938-1974.

Holiday United Methodist Church offers a "9/11 Prayer Service" at 7 p.m. Sunday at 4826 Bartelt Road. There will be a story, "Samaritans: Good and Bad," prayer and music by the contemporary group the Truth Bomb. An offering will be taken. Call (727) 937-1520.

Unity Truth Center in Port Richey will host a special Sept. 11 service, "In Remembrance," during worship at 10 a.m. Sunday at 5844 Pine Hill Road. Meditation starts at 9 a.m. Call (727) 848-7702.

[Last modified September 10, 2005, 01:23:18]