Hamburg, N.Y. (WBEN) - The highly anticipated Tunnel to Towers 9/11 NEVER FORGET Mobile Exhibit arrived ceremoniously to the Erie County Fair on Tuesday, escorted by local law enforcement, firefighters and other first responders.
This 83-foot tractor-trailer transforms into an 1,100-square-foot exhibit, to educate and remind the public as well as pay tribute to all who lost their lives lives on the tragic day of Sept. 11, 2001, which include 343 members of the Fire Department of New York City and 23 officers of the New York Police Department.
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Billy Puckett, field manager of the exhibit, has been driving the exhibit for the last 8 years all across the United States and Canada, sharing the stories, the pieces left behind and the history that comes with one of the scariest terroristic acts the United States has ever seen.
Puckett shared the history of the exhibit with WBEN on Tuesday.
"The exhibit started in 2013 and was christened in Fort Bragg, North Carolina on Sept. 11 that year. It was built to mainly go to schools, to educate our youth on the tragedy of that day. But over the years, the popularity increased for the exhibit and we operate, pretty much, 12 months a year. We still do schools, fairs, festivals, town celebrations, you name it, we do just a genre of everything now. It's pretty neat. This year, we will have approximately about 750,000 people in total that have gone through the exhibit over the last 10 years."
World Trade Center Steel, aluminum facade from the buildings, radio transmission recorders from the towers, items found in the rubble as well as the names of the victims, there is much to see and stories to be shared inside the exhibit, available to view at the Erie County Fair Aug. 9 through Aug. 14 outside the Showplace.
"They'll see the facts and figures construction of the towers, a lot of people don't realize how huge they were," says Puckett. "We have articles that were found in the rubble. When you see them, you'll just you'll be amazed at something that small was discovered, especially after you realize that there was never a desk chair, computer light fixture, toilet door knob, anything of that nature ever recovered. Some pieces of steel that were donated to the foundation including several remnants of fire trucks that were destroyed. In the very back of the exhibit, you'll see all about our foundation and how we got started. We pay tribute to everyone that lost her life that day, we also pay tribute to everyone who's lost her life since that day."
Puckett enjoys what he does, it never ceases to amaze him the amount of support and people he meets when he brings the history and stories into a community. He says some people wait in line for hours to see what's inside the exhibit.
"To see the how much they appreciate it, it's huge. A gentleman, a 90-year-old World War II Vet told me that as long as you talk about them, they're always alive. They need to be talked about, so they'll never be forgotten."
The Tunnels to Towers Foundation has been very proactive and charitable, giving back to communities of firefighters, veterans and first responders through there many programs that help build homes for first responders and homeless veterans and pay off mortgages for those veterans and first responders who need it. The foundation recently provided a mortgage-free home to the family of local firefighter Jason Arno, a firefighter who perished in the line of duty, responding to a fire on Main Street in Buffalo in March.
"You have to understand the relief of that burden, of that family to know that they can continue with life without having to worry about having a home to live in. I've met a lot of our recipients and actually will meet the wife [of Jason Arno] this week. We're looking forward to that, and just sharing some personal time, and get to know more more about them. The impact is huge," says Puckett.