By Paul Lomax and Tom Liddy
DNAinfo Reporters
MANHATTAN — They came from all around, young and old, women and men to pay tribute to the fallen.
At firehouses and police station houses from Chelsea to Ground Zero the names of those slain on 9/11 attacks were read aloud.
The Father Mychal Judge Walk of Remembrance, begun nine years ago, has become a touching tribute to the many who gave all on that terrible day.
And it was a solemn reminder Sunday of the selfless sacrifice of a Franciscan priest who left the safety of his home after the terrorists struck to minister to the dying.
Caring for his fellow Bravest, the Brooklyn-born FDNY chaplain — who was larger than life and watched over the poor, addicts and those with AIDS — died on 9/11 amid the rubble.
"This is the start to a very sad and difficult week here in New York City," said Fire Commissioner Salvatore Cassano. "I'm proud to be a part of this march in memory of our beloved Chaplain. He was a truly forgiving man. A true New Yorker and a real man of the people."
The walk was originally organized by Det. Steven McDonald, an NYPD cop who was shot and paralyzed in the line of duty in Central Park in 1986. He became close with Judge during his long recuperation period.
For the first walk, in 2002, about 50 people gathered under the priest's window at St. Francis of Assisi Church on 31st Street in Chelsea, said the rosary and then marched down Seventh Avenue to Ground Zero.
In the years since, the walk has become a symbol of the city's endurance through tragedy.
"We might be battered and bruised but we are not broken," said Det. McDonald. "New York City will come back.
"But as a city we will never forget their lives and what they all sacrificed for us on that day."
This year, the walk started with a mass at St. Francis, where Judge lived at the time of his death at the age of 68. More than 100 people packed into the house of worship.
From there the participants went to Engine 1/Ladder 24, steps away from the church, and then made several stops at fire houses and police precincts along the route to Ground Zero.
A new exhibit featuring Judge's bunker gear and helmet was blessed at the Fire Museum on Spring Street and along the way bells were rung in memory of those who were lost.
The walk concluded with a dedication ceremony at Engine 10/Ladder 10 at the World Trade Center site.
"This Memorial Walk calls for all of us to be in touch with our passions and how they are expressed in compassion for those people more in need than ourselves," said Fr. Christopher Keenan, who replaced Judge as chaplain.
"Mychal was one such man and had such a greatness of heart that he will never be forgotten."
Firefighter Justin Enzmann, 36, who serves in Squad 18 on W. 10th Street and Greenwich Avenue, said that Judge was "like a father to all us firefighters."
"This is a great day for Mychal and his family," he added.
But amid the heartache was a celebration of the lives and accomplishments of the departed, a week before the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
Bob Ogren, 71, who lost his firefighter son Joseph on 9/11, traveled all the way from Florida to pay tribute to Judge.
"I would not have missed this march for the world," said Ogren, who was also a firefighter, as was Joseph's twin brother, Lance.
"That guy [Judge] was a real hero just like my boy."
The son of two Irish immigrants, the Brooklyn-born Judge shined shoes in Manhattan before joining the Franciscan order in 1954, according to a biography from the Holy Name Province.
In 1992, he joined the FDNY as chaplain on a temporary basis and was officially given the job two years alter.
During his years in the FDNY, Judge ministered to the families of the victims of TWA Flight 800 in 1996 and won over the department with his charm, the biography said.
"It's a joyful day," said his twin sister, Dympna Jessich, 78. "Mychal is loving it!"
Andrew Reitz, 67, a priest at St. Francis Assisi knew fallen FDNY Chaplain Mychal Judge for over 30 years, also fondly recalled the personable priest.
"He was an outgoing and a very kind man who made friends very easily," he said. "He brought a lot of comfort to many, many people who will not forget what he did for them over the years."
Inside St. Francis is a memorial consisting of three mangled pieces of steel from the World Trade Center with a single golden rose rising gently from the mass that "transcends the senseless brutality with the enduring promise of hope," according to the inscription.
Attached is a card dedicated to the priest with his personal prayer written inside: "Lord, take me where You want me to go; Let me meet who You want me to meet; Tell me what You want me to say; and keep me out of Your way," it reads.
"It's an honor to be here. Mychal was a fabulous man," said Kenneth Florio, 80, of New Jersey, who was with the FDNY for 42 years.
"A true New Yorker. I can't begin to describe what a great man he was and how much we all still miss him to this day."
