Pitt-Johnstown Unveils One-of-a-Kind Monument -- The Heroes Memorial

JOHNSTOWN, Pa., Nov. 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, www.pitt-johnstown.pitt.edu , located 30 miles from the Flight 93 crash, Shanksville, Pa., dedicated The Heroes Memorial, believed to be the only memorial of its kind on any college campus in the United States.

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The Heroes Memorial pays tribute to the heroes of September 11, 2001, listing the names of the victims of the terrorist attacks (including passengers on American Airlines Flight 77, United Airlines Flights 175 and 93, and those who were in the World Trade Center and Pentagon). The Heroes Memorial also honors those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country during the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. In total, The Heroes Memorial comprises 12 granite panels containing 9,208 names. Additionally, it includes the ages of those military personnel killed in the line of duty. More than 5,550 of the service men and women who were killed in Afghanistan and Iraq were between the ages of 18 and 24, representing the traditional college-age population in our country and the Pitt-Johnstown campus. The panels surround a 3,500-pound section of I-beam procured from the World Trade Center and donated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Visitors to The Heroes Memorial are also greeted by two special granite panels that are reminders of the impact, especially on the children, of the lost lives and define the wars' life-changing impact on our country.

Pitt-Johnstown President Jem Spectar offered, "The memorial serves as a teachable monument, a solemn signpost of ultimate service to country including by many college-age citizens. It is a remembrance of the heavy burden borne by the fallen, the wounded, and their families and is a sober awakening to the obligations of citizenship, a clarion call to us all to be worthy of their sacrifice."

Serving the needs of its veterans, Pitt-Johnstown provides the signature MountainCat Veterans Program for ease with successful transition to college life.

Pitt-Johnstown is located in the Laurel Highlands of Western Pennsylvania and is the first and largest regional campus of the University of Pittsburgh.  The University offers a high-quality educational experience in a supportive living-learning environment designed to prepare students for the real world of the 21st century.  Pitt-Johnstown is recognized by the Princeton Review as a "Best Northeastern College," and by G.I. Jobs as a "Military Friendly School."  Additionally, Pitt-Johnstown has been named to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.

Media Contact:          
Robert W. Knipple      
Associate Vice President for Alumni and Community Relations  
University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown    
272 Blackington Hall      
450 Schoolhouse Road      
Johnstown, PA 15904    
814.269.2080      
[email protected]

SOURCE University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown