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FORMAL THANK YOU TO ATTORNEY GENERAL ELIOT SPITZER & STAFF
In the days following September 11, 2001 Attorney General Elliot Spitzer emerged as one of the only advocates for the Civilian Population. In a time when the weight of our grief was so great that it held us paralyzed, Elliot Spitzer began our fight for us. Mr. Spitzer has met with us on several occasions and has made him self-available almost at request. Each meeting he offered his assistance and has been incredibly helpful to our Organization. At this time Give Your Voice would like to thank Mr. Sptizer and his incredible staff especially Mindy Bockstein for all their help during this difficult time.
Meeting Attendees: Meeting Objective: 1. To reach out to Congressman Crowley for his support of Give Your Voice Mission Statement. Establish representation and to receive expedited answers to questions regarding the recovery effort. Specifically questions that focus upon the procedures used to spot, preserve and identify human remains of those who on Sept. 11th. 2. Facilitate and receive a "Helping hand" to navigate through the many struggles we have encountered when seeking financial assistance from the more 140 charities that received donations from fellow Americans. 3. To establish a voice and input in the plan to build a Memorial to remember all those lost on that terrible day. Critical Issues Discussed: Congressman Crowley was given a detailed description of our concerns regarding the recovery effort at both ground zero and at Staten Island. He was also provided with a report of our progress to date: 1. A Family Committee has been established by Mayor Giuliani to begin to provide families with much needed information. The committee is comprised of members of Give Your Voice, WTC Family Group, September's Mission, and the 9-11 WFVA Organizations. 2. Tours would be provided to ground zero and Staten Island to view the procedures in place. 3. Brochures will be made that will be mailed out to families with information regarding the recovery effort and the D.N.A. process. 4. Meetings will be held on a continuous basis. The organization was also very pleased that Mayor Elect Bloomberg attended the last meeting. Response: Congressman Crowley expressed his sympathy to all the families. He himself lost his dear cousin. He clearly understands the pain and suffering we are experiencing. Congressman Crowley was very concerned and expressed his support. He did convey his own frustration regarding the inability to contact the families who were affected by the Sept. 11th tragedy. There is a privacy law that prevents him or anyone from receiving such information. He had a letter written up and asked the Red Cross to mail them to the families. He expressed his sympathy and his determination to help. Congressman Crowley urges everyone to contact their local officials. They do not have the information needed to reach out to them. Outcome: Congressman Crowley has stated that he supports Give Your Voice. He is meeting with the Director of FEMA to discuss other ways to provide support and help. He will be contacting us to update us on the meeting. Congressman Crowley hopes to attend a meeting with either Mayor Giuliani or with the new Mayor Elect Bloomberg. Closing Comments: Congressman Crowley reassured us that the families are not alone. He will do everything to support us and the Mayor's plans to provide civilian families with information.
Attendees: GIVE YOUR VOICE, September's Mission, 9-11 Widows and Victims' Family Association, WTC United Family Group; Mayor Bloomberg, Jonathan Greenspun, OEM and OCME Opening Remarks: After initial introductions were made, Mayor Bloomberg offered sympathies to the families that suffered loss of a loved one(s) on September 11. He briefly described his visit to the Family Assistance Center and Freshkills and stressed the need for continued safety of personnel working at both locations. In addition, he informed the committee that Pier 94 has now been relocated to 49 Chambers street. "The new location is designed to provide a warm and private atmosphere for the families," he said. "No press will be allowed in the new family facility." Both the inside and outside walls have been carefully preserved and it is the administration's hope to have them both moved to the new facility within the next couple of days. Special care has been given to labeling, securing and photographing the walls so that they both can be reconstructed in the exact manner. For families who may not be aware of the change and go to Pier 94, shuttle buses will be available to help them travel to the new location. On the families need for information pertaining to the recovery, Mayor Bloomberg stated that it was also his goal to provide them with any information that is available.
Note: If you wish to participate, please send an email to Jennie Farrell at jennie@optonline.net Be sure to flag your request as Request to visit ground zero and other locations so that Jennie can make arrangements for you and your family members. Visits will be scheduled every other Wednesday. GYV Member John Cartier Volunteers As Civilian Liaison. GIVE YOUR VOICE again presented the need for a "Civilian Advocate" to serve as a communication link or liaison between the city and civilian families. Member John Cartier volunteered to play this role. His responsibility is to visit each location twice a week (may be on the guided tours) to observe the operation and to collaboratively work with Fire Department Personnel and NYPD on reporting any information relevant to the recovery effort back to the civilian families. By doing so, families are not left to solely rely on printed press for information that may not be accurate or incorrectly interpreted. It is important to note that John stressed tremendous gratitude to the Fire Department, NYPD and OCME Staff for all the support they have provided to the families. "They have been a true blessing and we appreciate everything they have done for the families," John said. The Mayor approved this role and John will begin to work with designated city officials next week. We appreciate the Mayor's support on this important need.
NYC Family Center Relocated New York City announced that the Family Assistance Center at Pier 94 is now closed for relocation--it will reopen on Monday, January 7, at 51 Chambers Street, between Broadway and Centre Street --opposite the Tweed Courthouse. Operating hours for the Center will be from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m, Monday through Friday. For further information, you can call The Family Assistance Hotline at 646-710-6245. In an effort to provide the families with information pertaining to the recovery operation, OEM Management has put together a comprehensive "Family Assistance Guide" about the recovery procedure, DNA and identification process and procedure to reclaim personal belongings of our loved ones. The brochure is the final stage of development and will be issued shortly. To access the information now, please click on the "Recovery Operation" link on our web site. We appreciate OEM's time and effort to develop the guide. It provides valuable information and is greatly appreciated by the families.
A similar brochure is also in development to answer questions that pertain to DNA testing and procedures. It will also update us on the ME office's potential need for additional DNA samples from select family members. Please be sure to look for more information about this important topic.
Recovery News. Lee Ielpi expressed concern over a Newsday article that reported the recovery of bodies found in voids. Lee, who actively works at Ground Zero stated that to his knowledge, no person has been found in a void. GIVE YOUR VOICE will be providing information on separate cover pertaining to the number of people that have been recovered to date as documented by the City of New York. Recent Concerns on the Treatment of Civilian Remains. Mayor Bloomberg dismissed any rumors of disrespectful treatment of civilian remains. He assured the committee that all human remains are treated with respect and that both a flag and chaplain are provided to all people recovered. Special honor guards pay respect for uniformed personnel.
Letter Mailing to Families Regarding Identified Personal Belongings. The NYPD Property Clerk's Office is preparing a letter mailing to notify family members about retrieving personal belongings from loved ones that have already been positively identified. Ninety percent of the personal effects from already positively identified persons have been returned to their respective families and the remaining ten percent will be retrieved by notified family members at their convenience. It is important to note that personal belongings are used by the OCME and NYPD as a means to help identify victims. These belongings will remain under their guardianship until a positive identification of the deceased person has been made. At that time, personal belongings can be released to family members.
Civilian Advocates Appointed. Michael Cartier and Bill Doyle have been named as the Civilian Advocates for the health care issues and will work with Jim Hanley. A meeting has been set for Jan. 11th at 10:00 am to begin the process of addressing victims' family health care needs. Bill Doyle raised the health care concerns family members have and the privacy issue. Mayor Bloomberg stated that he would assist and contact Eurobankers VI. Charities & Family Assistance Center GYV Member Marie Granieri and other members will meet with HRA staff regarding the Family Assistance Center. The facility and progress made to assist families in streamlining the process to obtain assistance from charities will be reviewed along with available resources and status of caseworkers consulting with family members.
Mr. Lynch raised concerns over the new viewing platforms. He brought to the Mayor's attention that people were bringing video cameras and taking pictures and expressed the need for greater sensitivity especially considering the fact that recoveries are still being made. Mayor Bloomberg stated that he was not sure what could be done to prevent this from occurring but that he would look into the matter.
GIVE YOUR VOICE asked the Mayor for his thoughts on the plan for a memorial in remembrance of our loved ones. He stated that he would like to see a memorial built along with other sources of economic development that can support the family members left behind. "No one can speak for everyone as to what should be built" Mayor Bloomberg stated. "We still have three to five months to go before all of the rubble is removed. We would like to rebuild the subway hopefully by November. There is much to do and the worse thing to happen is to proceed without a plan," he said. Christine Ferrar has been appointed by the Mayor to serve as a civilian advocate on the memorial. Jonathan Greenspun is going to arrange a meeting with John Whitehead and the committee to begin the process of gathering input from the families on the memorial.
Member Marie Granieri thanked the Mayor and expressed the need for his continued support for the victims' families. "We appreciate the city's concern for the people our loved ones left behind but there can no greater voice to speak on their behalf than the families themselves. We ask that in all your discussions to the press and to other media, the need to gather input from the victims' families regarding the memorial is consistently stressed. Further, we recognize the need to accomplish much at our committee meetings, but we also hope that we can continue to approach our efforts with the same sensitivity and care demonstrated to the families in the past," she said. Mayor Bloomberg will meet with the families again. The meeting date will be coordinated between Chairperson Jennie Farrell and Jonathan Greenspun.
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