Vashon Island Fire & Rescue’s 9/11 Memorial is nearly complete after a group of Rotary volunteers joined VIFR staff members, including Chief Hank Lipe and Assistant Chief George Brown, in planting several bushes last Friday.

The memorial includes multiple pieces of columnar basalt from the Columbia River basin, representing  the New York city skyline. One of those columns holds a steel piece from the Twin Towers, a reminder of the destruction of that day. The project was first conceived four years ago  and has been funded by private donations.

Taking a break from planting to talk about the memorial last week, Lipe noted he is pleased to see the project nearly complete: “Patience has been the virtue,” he said.