Constellations Named for Fallen Sept. 11 Heroes

The Firefighter Support Network has had stars named to honor the fallen heroes of the September 11^th World Trade Center attack.

Altogether, 406 stars, one for each fallen New York firefighter, police officer, paramedic and Port Authority police officer have been named and donated in memorial by International Star Registry.

“It stated with a hope that we could get stars donated for the seven firefighters lost from ladder 101 in Red Hook, Brooklyn, who are being remembered as “Seven in Heaven.” said Joyce Thomas, a volunteer with the FireFighter Support Network in Brooklyn, New York. “They donated memorial stars for all of the uniformed men and women who lost their lives protecting us.” Perseus was chosen as the appropriate constellation for the memorial since it is also known as “the Hero.”

All of the constellations were given their names in Greco-Roman mythology, and legend has it that, for his heroism, Perseus was memorialized in the stars by his father, Zeus. Each family received a framed certificate with the star name of their loved one, a dedication date of September 11, and coordinates to locate the star. A duplicate framed certificate was also donated to the officer’s firehouse or precinct.

The FireFighter Support Network is an organization of neighborhood, school, and professional volunteers whose purpose is to help Brooklyn firefighters, their families and friends of their fallen brothers, deal with the September 11 aftermath. The organization is involved with a number of firehouses providing both clinical and community support on a group and individual basis. Activities include: grief counseling, holiday events such as caroling, and Secret Santa, financial planning assistance for surviving family members and a concert for firefighters and their families by internationally acclaimed acapella singers, the Bobs. For further information, visit http://www.firefightersupport.net.

International Star Registry – Based in Ingleside, Illinois, International Star Registry has been helping name stars in the sky for more than 20 years. Employing a system for star tracking that utilizes charting information on the 18 million stars gathered for the Hubble Space Telescope, International Star Registry maps and charts each star individually by constellation. For further information on naming a star visit www.starregistry.com or call 800-282-3333.