Pinay maintenance worker included in 9/11 memorial in Long Island

Benilda Pascua Domingo, one of the Filipino victims of the terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center, has been included in a 9/11 memorial erected in Commack, Long Island, the Filipino Reporter has learned.

 

The memory of Domingo, 37, a maintenance worker at Windows on the World, is now part of the memorial that honors residents who died and families who lost someone that day.

 

Domingo lived in Elmhurst, Queens, but her two daughters has been living with their aunt in Commack.

 

The two daughters came to the United States months after their mother perished in the tragedy.

 

They were 5 and 2 at the time.

 

Domingo, a utility worker at the cleaning company ABM Industries, was a native of Barangay Sta. Maria, Laoag City, Ilocos Norte.

 

The memorial was unveiled last Tuesday, in time for the 11th anniversary of 9/11.

 

The monument is highlighted by a piece of WTC steel.

 

The district has held 9/11 anniversary events for the last 10 years.

 

Last year, community relations consultant Debbie Virga was notified Commack would receive a piece of steel from the Twin Towers, according to Newsday.

 

A committee of 15 students, staffers, alumni and residents worked for about a year to build the memorial.

 

“It was just a big community undertaking and an experience I will never forget,” Justin Corben, 17, a senior who was part of the student group that wrote the dedication gracing a side of the monument, told Newsday.

 

The Gappsi Group, a Smithtown home improvement company, helped with the design and donated supplies and labor, according to the report.

 

Owner Giuseppe Abbrancati valued the work at about $30,000.

 

Several stone walkways lead to the granite monument, where the piece of steel is perched.

 

One path is paved with dozens of bricks etched with names of victims and families or messages such as “never forget.” - Filipino Reporter