Riverhead remembers two local heroes who lost their lives trying to save others on Sept. 11, 2001

In a somber service under overcast skies Sunday evening, the Reeves Park community remembered two residents who perished in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

Lt. Thomas Kelly, 38, a member of FDNY Ladder Co. 105 in Brooklyn, and Jonathan Ielpi, 29, a member of FDNY Squad 288 in Queens, perished in the collapse of the South Tower, after they rushed into the burning skyscraper in a valiant effort to save people trapped inside.

Kelly’s entire company was killed in the mission. Ielpi was one of eight men in Squad 288 who died that day.

In all, 343 FDNY firefighters were killed in the attack. They were among nearly 3,000 fatalities on Sept. 11 — passengers on the four commercial airliners hijacked by terrorists, people at work inside the twin towers, people on the ground outside the buildings, people at work in the Pentagon in Washington D.C.

“Twenty-one years ago. It seems like a lifetime,” said Eric Biegler of the Sound Park Heights Civic Association, which has organized the remembrance ceremony annually since 2010. “For some in the audience, it is a lifetime. But for those who lost and those who remember, it seems like just yesterday.”

Each year, the Riverhead Fire Department turns out in force to honor their fallen brethren, leading a candlelight walk down Park Road/Thomas R. Kelly Drove to the 9-11 Memorial Park on the corner of Sound Avenue. They were joined by Jamesport Fire Department, Riverhead Police, Supervisor Yvette Aguiar, a retired NYC police sergeant who responded to Ground Zero and worked in the recovery effort, councilmen Tim Hubbard, Frank Beyrodt, Ken Rothwell and Robert Kern, and a few dozen residents.

Family members of the fallen heroes took part in the services, sharing their recollections of the brave young firefighters who summered in tight-knit Riverhead community overlooking the Long Island Sound.

Twenty-one years later, the families are still trying to make sense of a tragedy that stunned the nation and changed the world — and brought an abrupt end to life as they knew it.

Ielpi’s sister, Ann Marie Holleran, remembered growing up with a younger brother who teased her mercilessly, gave her chicken pox, shared confidences, and was a true friend to the end.

Holleran reflected on why Americans mark the anniversary of that dark day every year.

“We promised never to forget. We promised to honor the victims. American citizens promised to make sure future generations remember,” she said.

One of Kelly’s brothers, Robert, a New York City firefighter, spent the days and weeks after the attack, like thousands of firefighters, police officers and emergency workers from across the region, working at the site that came to be known as Ground Zero — first, in a desperate quest to rescue survivors and then, hoping to recover remains.

Robert Kelly, as he does every year, spent the day at memorial services, starting out at his brother’s firehouse in Brooklyn. He and the rest of the Kelly clan then attend the annual ceremonies at the World Trade Center site, before coming out to Reeves Park for the evening service.

“It’s good to be back home in Reeves Park, for our family to be with you all. That’s what it’s all about, friends and family and community,” Robert Kelly said. “That’s what Tommy and Jonathan were all about.”

He shared a poem he said was written by his cousin Chris, an NYPD officer who spent weeks at Ground Zero in the recovery effort. The poem, called “Visions of Heaven,” was written weeks after the attack, recounts a comforting dream he had of his deceased cousin in heaven.

“I’m sure that Tommy and Jonathan are up there smiling down on us right now,” Robert Kelly said. “And they’re making sure it doesn’t rain,” he said, alluding to the threatening skies.

Rabbi Michael Roscoe of Temple Israel of Riverhead read a poem called “The Power of One,” by Cheryl Sawyer, describing how the Sept. 11 attacks unified America.

Riverhead Fire Department Chaplain Justin Winter led the gathering in prayer.

Riverhead High School vocalist Olivia Meyer performed the National Anthem and “God Bless America.” Riverhead High School NJROTC Cadet Kevin Jones, trumpeter, played “Taps.” Bagpiper Jim Flood, a retired police officer, performed “Amazing Grace” at the conclusion of the ceremony and other selections as the candlelight procession made its way to the park.

“Go in peace,” Biegler told the crowd gathered for the service. “Hold each other close. Cherish the time we have. And more importantly than anything else, never forget.”

The ceremony ended, and as the crowd dispersed, a steady rain began to fall.

RiverheadLOCAL photos by Denise Civiletti