Downtown Social 10.05.11

Despite overcast skies and light rain on Sunday, Oct. 2, hundreds of Lower Manhattan residents turned out for the first of several Community Evenings at the 9/11 Memorial. Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer thanked Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver for originating the idea. "This is one of the communities that suffered the most," said Silver.

June and Edwin Hernandes are two such residents. The couple still live on Grand Street, where they resided on 9/11. Edwin, a member of the city's Sanitation Department, was among the first responders to the site on Sept. 12, 2001.

"It's depressing and very sad the way these people died," Edwin noted.

And while the memory of 9/11 will endure, on Sunday others were captivated by the architecture of the memorial site itself.

"It's very powerful to hear only the rushing sound of water," said Thomas Lozada of the twin pools. "You can tune out everything surrounding the site. And it is very cool that you can't see all the way to the bottom [of the pools]. It adds to the symbolism of this place."

[photosmash id=18 layout='gallery_view_layout']