American flag memorial continues to honor lives lost on Sept. 11

When people walk or drive by Heritage Park, they will notice a section of grass in the park with rows of American flags that were planted to honor the lives lost in in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Brothers Steven and Tyler Cenci planned another year of the Cranbury tradition that began several years ago where rows of flags are neatly planted.

They were joined by fellow Troop 52 Boy Scouts and Cranbury residents with planting 2,977 American flags in Heritage Park on Sept. 2 in honor of 9/11 terrorist attack victims.

The Flag memorial was created to not only honor the victims but the bravery of many on that day which changed the lives of many American families and the entire country.

The park which is at the corner of South Main Street and Old Trenton Road was the chosen location for the creation of the Sept. 11 Flag Memorial by Donovan Mavoides, Gavin Mavoides, and Tess Staples when they were juniors at the Peddie School.

They created the memorial when the nation commemorated the 20th anniversary of Sept. 11 attacks.

The planned efforts and execution in the planting of flags has received financial support from Helene Cody Foundation since the memorial’s inception. Helene Cody Foundation’s mission is to inspire youth to volunteer, better their communities and themselves.

The attacks of Sept. 11 did not only kill and injure people at the World Trade Center, Pentagon, and crash of United Airlines Flight 93 in Pennsylvania.

After the day, the World Trade Center Health program, which provides medical monitoring and treatment of World Trade Center related health conditions for 9/11 first responders and survivors, reported in 2024 that 1,469 members have died from 9/11 related digestive and airway disorders and 1,366 have died from related cancers due to the exposure to the toxic materials at the site.