St. Paul’s Chapel sits right next to where the Twin Towers stood and was miraculously not destroyed by the attack on the World Trade Center, September 11, 2001. During the clearing of the debris from the wreckage the church became a central meeting point where firefighters and rescue workers could find everything from food and water to massages and spiritual assistance. It also was a place for people to pray, hope, and wait to see if their loved ones would be found alive. Today it not only sits as a reminder of that horrible time but as a symbol of hope and spiritual repair. As New York’s oldest building in continuous use, construction was completed in 1766, its’ survival represents the strength and perseverance that New Yorkers and Americans have when faced with disaster and hardship.

I want to note that the first 5 pictures below of that awful time were taken from photos on display at the Chapel and are not my work but the work of others. I visited ground zero on the day that the New York Stock Exchange reopened but was too awestruck and grief-stricken from the death and destruction that surrounded me to take any pictures. I hope the owners of these photos do not mind my use of them. The other photos in the series are my own.