Bill Heffernan

My thoughts are with the families and friends of the first responders who died that day, the first responders who survived, but continue to struggle with September 11-related health issues; the families and friends of those lost on the four airplanes and in the World Trade Center and Pentagon. 

Below, you'll find information about the state's ceremony to honor September 11, as well as a visit we had in West Haven from Paul Veneto (of Paulie's Push) and plans to honor September 11 here in West Haven.

Be well, my friends.

Paul "Paulie" Veneto, 64, a now-retired United Airlines flight attendant, started "Paulie's Push" in 2021, when he pushed an airline beverage cart from Boston's Logan Airport to Ground Zero in New York to honor the flight crews lost on September 11, 2001, including those on United Flight 175, a flight he worked just before it went out that morning. Paulie wanted to recognize the flight crews - the first line of defense against the terrorists that September morning - and recognize them as heroes. That first push went viral and received a lot of national news coverage. He was encouraged to continue.

In 2022, Paulie pushed the cart from Washington D.C.'s Dulles Airport to the Pentagon in memory of American Flight 77. In 2023, he pushed over 300 miles in 30 days from Newark-Liberty to the National Flight 93 Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania in memory of United Flight 93.

This year, Paulie's Push honors American Flight 11, which flew out of Logan Airport in Boston on September 11, 2001.

On Labor Day, when Paulie made his way to West Haven, the West Haven Fire Department, West Haven Police Department, and residents welcomed him, and he was escorted through the town. While he was here, Paulie shook hands with FDNY retiree and September 11 survivor Lt. Mickey Kross of Engine Company 16 (pictured below). 

This year’s ceremony will be held at 5:30 p.m. on September 5 at Sherwood Island State Park in Westport.

Family members of those who were killed in the attacks will participate, and the names of the 161 victims with ties to Connecticut will be read aloud.

Connecticut’s official memorial honoring the victims of the attacks is located on a peninsula at Sherwood Island State Park, where on a clear day the Manhattan skyline can be viewed across Long Island Sound. The state park was chosen as the site for the memorial because it is the location where, in the hours immediately following the attacks in 2001, many people gathered to observe the smoke and devastation on Lower Manhattan from across Long Island Sound. The same site was also used by the Connecticut National Guard as a staging area for the state's relief efforts in New York City.

• Wednesday, September 11, 6:30 p.m., William A. Soderman Memorial Flagpole, Bradley Point Park - Flag-raising Ceremony
• Wednesday, September 11, 7 p.m., Richard S. Gabrielle September 11 Memorial, Savin Rock Beach Walk - Candlelight Vigil