Volunteer firefighter found at Ground Zero laid to rest
Jane Lerner
The Journal News
NYACK—The family of Welles Crowther gathered on an unseasonably warm afternoon to put to rest his remains more than six months after he perished at the World Trade Center.
"Welles is alive and well today in spirit, as are all the other innocents lost that day," his mother, Alison, said yesterday during a brief outdoor service at Grace Episcopal Church.
The timing of the ceremony, so close to Easter, increases the peace and serenity her family feels, she said.
"We revel in the message of Easter and God's gift to us," she said.
The body of 24-year-old Crowther, an Upper Nyack native and graduate of Nyack High School, was discovered a week and a half ago in the debris of what had been the lobby of Tower 2.
The family had a private funeral last week. About 75 people gathered in the church's memorial garden yesterday as his family and the Rev. Richard Gressle placed his ashes in an immurement wall.
Crowther lived in Manhattan and worked as an equities trader for Sandler O'Neill and Partners on the 104th floor of Tower 2 the second tower hit by a hijacked airliner, but the first to collapse.
The discovery of his body in the lobby area brought great comfort to his family.
Crowther along with his father, Jefferson, was a volunteer with Empire Hook and Ladder Fire Company 1 in Upper Nyack. His family now believes that he stayed behind to help evacuate others from the building.
Since Sept 11, the family learned that a co-worker, who was also a volunteer firefighter, was on the phone after the planes hit and told the person he was talking to that he and another volunteer firefighter were helping to evacuate. The family believes the other firefighter was Welles.
"Welles has reached the portal. The way outside was clear; Both towers blazed above him. He must have known real fear," family friend Vui Morgan read in a poem during the service. "But he sensed an urgent need there. In the chaos and debris. So he turned back from the exit To help others get free."
An honor guard of volunteers with Empire Hook and Ladder stood at attention during the outdoor ceremony while a harpsichordist played. More than 1,000 people attended a memorial service honoring Crowther in September.
In addition to his parents, he is survived by two sisters, Honor and Paige.
The Journal News, White Plains, New York, 31 Mar 2002, Sun • Page 18
Welles is honored at the National September 11th Memorial.
Jane Lerner
The Journal News
NYACK—The family of Welles Crowther gathered on an unseasonably warm afternoon to put to rest his remains more than six months after he perished at the World Trade Center.
"Welles is alive and well today in spirit, as are all the other innocents lost that day," his mother, Alison, said yesterday during a brief outdoor service at Grace Episcopal Church.
The timing of the ceremony, so close to Easter, increases the peace and serenity her family feels, she said.
"We revel in the message of Easter and God's gift to us," she said.
The body of 24-year-old Crowther, an Upper Nyack native and graduate of Nyack High School, was discovered a week and a half ago in the debris of what had been the lobby of Tower 2.
The family had a private funeral last week. About 75 people gathered in the church's memorial garden yesterday as his family and the Rev. Richard Gressle placed his ashes in an immurement wall.
Crowther lived in Manhattan and worked as an equities trader for Sandler O'Neill and Partners on the 104th floor of Tower 2 the second tower hit by a hijacked airliner, but the first to collapse.
The discovery of his body in the lobby area brought great comfort to his family.
Crowther along with his father, Jefferson, was a volunteer with Empire Hook and Ladder Fire Company 1 in Upper Nyack. His family now believes that he stayed behind to help evacuate others from the building.
Since Sept 11, the family learned that a co-worker, who was also a volunteer firefighter, was on the phone after the planes hit and told the person he was talking to that he and another volunteer firefighter were helping to evacuate. The family believes the other firefighter was Welles.
"Welles has reached the portal. The way outside was clear; Both towers blazed above him. He must have known real fear," family friend Vui Morgan read in a poem during the service. "But he sensed an urgent need there. In the chaos and debris. So he turned back from the exit To help others get free."
An honor guard of volunteers with Empire Hook and Ladder stood at attention during the outdoor ceremony while a harpsichordist played. More than 1,000 people attended a memorial service honoring Crowther in September.
In addition to his parents, he is survived by two sisters, Honor and Paige.
The Journal News, White Plains, New York, 31 Mar 2002, Sun • Page 18
Welles is honored at the National September 11th Memorial.
Volunteer firefighter found at Ground Zero laid to rest
Jane Lerner
The Journal News
NYACK—The family of Welles Crowther gathered on an unseasonably warm afternoon to put to rest his remains more than six months after he perished at the World Trade Center.
"Welles is alive and well today in spirit, as are all the other innocents lost that day," his mother, Alison, said yesterday during a brief outdoor service at Grace Episcopal Church.
The timing of the ceremony, so close to Easter, increases the peace and serenity her family feels, she said.
"We revel in the message of Easter and God's gift to us," she said.
The body of 24-year-old Crowther, an Upper Nyack native and graduate of Nyack High School, was discovered a week and a half ago in the debris of what had been the lobby of Tower 2.
The family had a private funeral last week. About 75 people gathered in the church's memorial garden yesterday as his family and the Rev. Richard Gressle placed his ashes in an immurement wall.
Crowther lived in Manhattan and worked as an equities trader for Sandler O'Neill and Partners on the 104th floor of Tower 2 the second tower hit by a hijacked airliner, but the first to collapse.
The discovery of his body in the lobby area brought great comfort to his family.
Crowther along with his father, Jefferson, was a volunteer with Empire Hook and Ladder Fire Company 1 in Upper Nyack. His family now believes that he stayed behind to help evacuate others from the building.
Since Sept 11, the family learned that a co-worker, who was also a volunteer firefighter, was on the phone after the planes hit and told the person he was talking to that he and another volunteer firefighter were helping to evacuate. The family believes the other firefighter was Welles.
"Welles has reached the portal. The way outside was clear; Both towers blazed above him. He must have known real fear," family friend Vui Morgan read in a poem during the service. "But he sensed an urgent need there. In the chaos and debris. So he turned back from the exit To help others get free."
An honor guard of volunteers with Empire Hook and Ladder stood at attention during the outdoor ceremony while a harpsichordist played. More than 1,000 people attended a memorial service honoring Crowther in September.
In addition to his parents, he is survived by two sisters, Honor and Paige.
The Journal News, White Plains, New York, 31 Mar 2002, Sun • Page 18
Welles is honored at the National September 11th Memorial.
Jane Lerner
The Journal News
NYACK—The family of Welles Crowther gathered on an unseasonably warm afternoon to put to rest his remains more than six months after he perished at the World Trade Center.
"Welles is alive and well today in spirit, as are all the other innocents lost that day," his mother, Alison, said yesterday during a brief outdoor service at Grace Episcopal Church.
The timing of the ceremony, so close to Easter, increases the peace and serenity her family feels, she said.
"We revel in the message of Easter and God's gift to us," she said.
The body of 24-year-old Crowther, an Upper Nyack native and graduate of Nyack High School, was discovered a week and a half ago in the debris of what had been the lobby of Tower 2.
The family had a private funeral last week. About 75 people gathered in the church's memorial garden yesterday as his family and the Rev. Richard Gressle placed his ashes in an immurement wall.
Crowther lived in Manhattan and worked as an equities trader for Sandler O'Neill and Partners on the 104th floor of Tower 2 the second tower hit by a hijacked airliner, but the first to collapse.
The discovery of his body in the lobby area brought great comfort to his family.
Crowther along with his father, Jefferson, was a volunteer with Empire Hook and Ladder Fire Company 1 in Upper Nyack. His family now believes that he stayed behind to help evacuate others from the building.
Since Sept 11, the family learned that a co-worker, who was also a volunteer firefighter, was on the phone after the planes hit and told the person he was talking to that he and another volunteer firefighter were helping to evacuate. The family believes the other firefighter was Welles.
"Welles has reached the portal. The way outside was clear; Both towers blazed above him. He must have known real fear," family friend Vui Morgan read in a poem during the service. "But he sensed an urgent need there. In the chaos and debris. So he turned back from the exit To help others get free."
An honor guard of volunteers with Empire Hook and Ladder stood at attention during the outdoor ceremony while a harpsichordist played. More than 1,000 people attended a memorial service honoring Crowther in September.
In addition to his parents, he is survived by two sisters, Honor and Paige.
The Journal News, White Plains, New York, 31 Mar 2002, Sun • Page 18
Welles is honored at the National September 11th Memorial.
