Pentagon Attack Mementos Saved for Future Display
By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Dec. 3, 2001 -- On the last day of November, a
wind-swept, sullen sky tossed raindrops upon the wreaths,
flowers, photographs, handwritten letters and red, white
and blue flags gathered on a knoll overlooking the
Pentagon.
As workmen repaired the building's west wall about a half
mile away, Army Col. David D. Phillips stood atop the hill
and eyed the mementos placed by people from around the
world to honor the 184 victims killed when the hijacked aircraft slammed into the Pentagon during the Sept. 11 terrorist attack.
Phillips said the mementos at this site near Arlington
National Cemetery and others nearby would be packed and
transported to the Pentagon's remote delivery site to be
cataloged and stored.
"We're doing it so they aren't destroyed by the elements,"
said Phillips, the Army Staff's director of security. He
noted the items would be displayed in a planned permanent
memorial.
The public began placing mementos near the Pentagon
immediately after the Sept. 11 attack, Phillips remarked.
Volunteers had kept the sites clean and helped to prevent
vandalism, he added.
"Out of nowhere, the people just did it," he said, noting
that people across the nation had dropped off items to
express their condolences. Phillips believes the mementos,
many of which were handwritten cards and letters closing
with the words, 'Never Forget,' symbolize American unity
during a time of crisis.
"We're all one -- not only the people that were in the
building, but also the people outside the building and
across the country," he explained.
Laura Landrum, a visitor from Fort Collins, Colo., came to
the memorial site near Arlington with her family en route
to the Smithsonian Institution.
"It is touching, actually, to see these sorts of memorials
here where people have brought a flag, or written something
... it is kind of moving just to see it," she remarked.
Supervisor Ronnie McLendon's team of DoD-contracted movers
arrived at the Arlington site to pack up the mementos and
load them into a moving van.
"We're going to take our time. This is a delicate
operation," said McLendon, who estimated it would take
three to four hours to pack the mementos.
Contract employee Michael Banks began filling a cardboard
box with American flags, flowers and a brown teddy bear.
"We all knew people" who worked at the Pentagon, Banks
remarked. "Hopefully, nothing like this will ever happen
again."
 | Contractors load a message board onto a
truck at the Sept. 11 terrorist attack memorial site near
Arlington National Cemetery overlooking the Pentagon. The
board and other mementos were removed Nov. 30, 2001, for
safekeeping and eventual display at a planned permanent
memorial. Photo by Gerry J. Gilmore. (Click photo for
screen-resolution image; high-resolution image available.)
|  | Contractor Michael Banks carefully boxes
U.S. flags, stuffed animals, flowers, and other items at a
spontaneously created memorial for Sept. 11 terrorist
attack victims near the Pentagon. The mementos were removed
Nov. 30, 2001, for safekeeping and eventual display at a
planned permanent memorial. Photo by Gerry J. Gilmore.
(Click photo for
screen-resolution image; high-resolution image available.)
|  | Ronnie McLendon (in suit near center)
instructs his team on dismantling a memorial site near the
Pentagon. His company, North American Telecommunications
Inc., was contracted to package and move the mementos Nov.
30, 2001, for safekeeping and eventual display at a planned
permanent memorial honoring victims of the Sept. 11
terrorist attacks on the Pentagon. Photo by Gerry J.
Gilmore. (Click photo for
screen-resolution image; high-resolution image available.)
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