Children to lead 9/11 anniversary program
 |
Crowds gathered last year near the World Trade Center site in New York on the first anniversary of the September 11 attacks.
Story Tools
SPECIAL REPORT
|
|
|
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Children will take the lead in New York's ceremony to mark the second anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Gov. George Pataki announced this week.
Children will read the names of victims and perform music throughout the program, Bloomberg said Monday.
"It is in them that the spirit of our city lives on," Bloomberg said.
In addition, "Art for Heart," a canvas created by children who lost loved ones in the attacks, will be on display at the World Trade Center site.
The ceremony will pause four times -- twice to mark the times each plane hit the trade center towers and twice to mark the times when each tower fell.
An honor guard with members of city, state, federal and nonprofit agencies and representatives of victims' families will rotate every 30 minutes of the ceremony.
The observance is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. EDT September 11 and conclude after noon, officials said. Guests may begin to gather at the World Trade Center site at 7 a.m.
At sunset, the "Tribute of Light" display will return to honor the memory of those who died in the attacks. The tribute involves two beams of light shining skyward near the World Trade Center site, becoming visible at night as a ghostly, symbolic reminder of the twin towers.
The twin beams of light shone from the site six months after the attacks, on March 11, 2002.
The "Tribute of Light" will be brought back for one night every year on September 11.
Details about the evening events will be released in the next few weeks.
