Quietly and somberly around town, a number of people are almost apologetically raising the question: Why not have one park, the old Peninsula Pool space, dedicated to all those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001? Why rename Grace Avenue Park and give it a long name when it will take a generation before people call it anything but "Grace Park"? After all, how many people do you know who call Sixth Avenue, Avenue of the Americas?

It is a delicate issue because no one wants to offend or further hurt any of the families who lost a loved one. Nor does anyone want to alienate our brave and dedicated volunteer firefighters who more than deserve a statue located in a park.

But to separate heroes and victims in two separate parks somehow undermines the very sense of unity and overriding humanity that September 11th so painfully birthed.

A fresh, new park in a serene location on a hill overlooking Manhasset Bay is a blank tablet on which community residents can memorialize a moment in history that has profoundly and forever changed us all.

It has been said by some that the Vigilant Company membership did not want a firefighters memorial at the Peninsula Pool property because it is not physically located in their service area. But do physical boundaries really matter? After all, the concept is to honor all of Great Neck's firefighters, whether they are members of Manhasset-Lakeville or the Alert or Vigilant. And for those of us who have followed fires and emergencies all over town, we know that all of the departments always pull together in times of crisis.

Possibly the reason that the renaming of the Saddle Rock Bridge has been contentious in some quarters has to do with the rather hasty decision to rename it that did not involve the broader community. We can understand why Tom Gullota wanted to dedicate it before his term was over; it was under his watch that the event occurred and Nassau County, for all of its problems, did rise to the occasion to assist New York City. And for some of us, it will simply and always be The Bridge where we spontaneously poured out our hearts and grieved together.

We only hope that our community can create a place where we can come together and reflect and remember and rededicate ourselves to a world at peace.

- Carol Frank