A steady rain may have masked the tears in lower Manhattan this morning, but it did not dampen the grief or desire to remember the 2,752 people who were killed in the World Trade Center attacks.
Families and friends of those who perished eight years ago, many carrying pictures of loved ones wrapped in plastic at a ceremony in Zuccotti Park, said they returned to the site year after year out of a sense of duty and respect.
"When I'm here, I feel peace, and I'm sure there are thousands of people who feel the same way," said Elaine DeJesus of Clifton, N.J.
She held a framed photograph of her sister, Nereida, 30, who worked for Ion Insurance on the 98th floor of Tower 2 and left behind a daughter, now 15 and living with her dad in the Bronx.
DeJesus said she hoped much of the construction would be complete by the tenth anniversary of the attacks, but that doesn't look likely. She noted that construction had begun on some elements of the new design.
"At least there is a little bit above ground."
For the first time, they were able to see evidence of a memorial being erected at the site. Family by family, they stepped into the beginnings of a memorial plaza, placing red roses into a reflecting pool.
Dixie Hobbs, whose daughter, Tara Yvette Hobbs, 31, also worked at Ion Insurance, said she returns for each anniversary from her home in North Carolina.
"It doesn't get any easier," she said. "You just find more ways to cope with it."
Hobbs said she hoped one day there would be a place at Ground Zero to formally remember the victims, but she doesn't dwell on the delays.
"I'd rather concentrate on the positive," she said.
Ilia Rodriguez travels from Miami every anniversary to honor her son, Carlos "Rey" Lillo, a FDNY paramedic, whose picture she pasted on a red heart-shaped sign with the words “My Son, My Hero.”
She said it mattered little to her how quickly the rebuilding happened.
"They're gonna do what they gonna do and it doesn’t matter what we say."
John Quinn, who lost a friend, Joyce Carpento, said he had mixed feelings about returning every year.
"It's a hard thing to do, but there's no other place I'd want to be."
He said he looked forward to seeing more progress on a memorial, "something everyone can appreciate."
Quinn was with Deborah Burto, another friend of Carpento, 40, who worked for General Telecom on the 83rd floor of the North Tower. She said it was too soon to move on.
"It's kind of like having water,” Burto said. “As time goes on, you just keep getting thirstier.”
Burto thought the rain deterred some people from coming to Ground Zero, “but the need is just as strong as ever. A lot of people feel at a loss on a day like today. I worry about them.”
Alyson Low, of Fayetville, Ark., whose sister, Sara Low, was an attendant on American Airlines Flight 11, said returning every year was "like a scab breaking open over and over again."
She was disappointed that the rebuilding was going so slowly because "this isn't just for the victims and their loved ones, but for the whole country."
But Burto was pleased that legislation passed on Thursday made Sept. 11 a national day of service.
“We haven’t been defeated by this,” Burto said. “We’re just getting stronger.”
Mayor Michael Bloomberg downplayed the controversy surrounding the ongoing delays to memorial construction.
"Ten years from now we’re going to look back and nobody’s going to remember" how long it took to build the memorial, Bloomberg told CNN. The important thing was to get the project done safely, and done right. Besides, he said: "Nobody remembers how long it took to build Central Park."
This year, the list of victims read by family members and volunteers grew by one name.
Leon Heyward died last year of lymphoma and lung disease. His death was ruled a homicide caused by the toxic plume kicked up by the collapsing towers.
The toxic particles along with the security concerns caused by the attacks led to fears that tourism to New York City would plummet. That hasn't been the case, and many tourists came to be a part of the remembrance.
“Everyone saw what happened on TV and it’s important to not forget,” said Mark Steigerwald, 34, of Germany. “There’s very negative things in this world, and this is one we all remember.”
But the strongest memories were of those who were lost, carried on in loved ones' minds and in worn photos tucked into wallets.
Nick Chiarchiaro, 67, remembered dropping his wife, Dorothy, off to work at Fred Alger Management on the 93rd floor of Tower One that day. She told him to come back at 3 o'clock that afternoon — she was going to sneak out early.
“Twenty minutes later, she was dead,” Chiarchiaro said.
His wife was a dynamic woman, he said as he cracked a bittersweet smile and pulled out his wallet. He showed a picture of her in a swimsuit.
"At 57 she still wore a bikini,” he said. “She was a very exciting woman.”
Chiarchiaro makes his annual visit from Vernon, N.J., where he now lives alone. It gets lonelier at Ground Zero, too.
"The crowd gets smaller and smaller every year," he said. "I think it is time to allow the families to settle down."
Heather Grossmann, Jon Schuppe, Gabriela Resto-Montero and Michael P. Ventura contributed to this report.
