 Coping
with the 9.11.01 Aftermath
Accounts of Survivors
The Story of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church
By: Dimitri Stastinopoulas
(Photo by Grisha Ressetar)
The terrorist attack against the Twin Towers of the
World Trade Center that killed an estimated 5,000 people also destroyed the
tiny St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, located about 500 feet from ground
zero.
On Tuesday morning, September 11, 2001, Fr. John Romas,
pastor, attempted to go to his church but was turned back by police.
Wednesday, he was permitted to visit the site to view what was left of the
church. "It would break your heart," he said of the devastation he witnessed.
"It's one thing to see it on TV, and another thing to see it in person. St.
Nicholas is buried under debris. It is the worst thing." He described steel
girders and concrete from the towers burying the building.
Greek immigrants established St. Nicholas Church in 1916
and purchased the structure for $25,000. Among the church's unique
characteristics are its small size and its icons, which were a gift from the
last czar of Russia, Nicholas II. Fr. Romas expressed hope he would be able to
salvage some of the icons.
Fr. Romas also said he is attempting to locate a site in
the area to hold church services and plans to ask permission from city
officials to allow him to retrieve the church's holy relics: those of St.
Nicholas, St. Katherine and St. Sava. They were kept in an ossuary on what had
been the top floor of the four-story building.
This is a view of the WTC looking up from St. Nicholas
Greek Orthodox Church, right across the street.
The above photo is a photograph by Grisha Ressetar which shows the shade from the Church's top Cross
and Bell, falling onto the World Trade Center.
Until last Tuesday.
God bless them all.
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