New 9/11 Memorial Includes Last Calls Victims Made

Flight 93 visitors center opens to the public
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 11, 2015 5:19 AM CDT
Updated Sep 11, 2015 6:55 AM CDT
Victims' Voices Included in Moving New 9/11 Memorial
This is a view of the Flight 93 National Memorial visitors center in Shanksville, Pa.   (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Today marks the 14th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and there is a moving new memorial center for those who died on United Airlines Flight 93. The long-awaited visitors center at the Flight 93 National Memorial near Shanksville, Pa., opened to the public yesterday with a dedication ceremony where Gov. Tom Wolf described the 40 passengers and crew as heroes who "changed the course of American history," the Washington Post reports. Families of Flight 93 President Gordon Felt, whose brother Edward died that day, tells the Post that the victims "could have sat back and let others dictate the end of their lives," but "they fought back and became heroes in the process," saving the US Capitol.

Outside the center, a path along the plane's route leads to what PBS describes as "two 40-foot-high walls meant to mimic the shape of an airplane wing." A boulder stands at the impact site. Inside, displays tell the story of 9/11 and show recovered fragments from the plane. One display allows visitors to listen to some of the 37 calls made from the flight, including heartbreaking farewells to loved ones, the Post reports. "I just love you and I just wanted to tell you that. I don't know if I'm going to get the chance to tell you that again or not," passenger Linda Gronlund tells her sister in one recording. Including the messages was a controversial choice, but the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette editorial board says it was the right call because the voicemails, "while intended for family members, also convey a message to the world: that love prevails even in chaos and tragedy." (More Flight 93 National Memorial stories.)

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