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Remembering The Uniformed Heroes
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As part of NY1's special 9/11 coverage, Rebecca Spitz takes a look at how the terrorist attack affected members of the uniformed services.
Video clips can be viewed with the free Real Player.
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Nobody forced them to respond to the World Trade Center. They did it because it was in their nature. Three State Supreme Court officers, three private Emergency Medical Technicians, one Fire Patrolman: all lived their last moments as they led their lives - putting others first.
Their deaths may have been overshadowed by the overwhelming number of deaths in the Police and Fire departments. But for those who loved them, their loss is incalculable.
These are some of their stories, from the people who remember them the best.
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FOLLOW THE VIDEO LINKS TO WATCH THE COMPLETE PROFILES
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Yamel Jager-Merino
The men and women in uniform share a common bond and that was never more evident than on 9/11. Whether on duty or off, hundreds of uniformed heroes rushed to the towers without being dispatched.
They went because they knew they would be needed.
One of them was Yamel Jager-Merino, a 24-year-old EMT from Yonkers. She was the youngest female rescue worker to die in the Twin Towers, and a year later, her family is still reeling from the tragedy.
 
WATCH VIDEO [7:41]
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Keith Roma
For one family, coping with the loss of a son has been magnified by what they feel is a lack of recognition for his work.
Keith Roma was in the Fire Patrol, a group that works with the Fire Department protecting property damaged by fire and water. While not a member of the FDNY, Keith was in uniform on September 11 and rushed to the towers when disaster struck.
His mother is grateful that Keith was able to make one last call, but she is haunted by the memory of it.
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WATCH VID [8:17]
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Mitch Wallace
In the shadow of the World Trade Center sits the State Supreme Court. A dozen officers who have the job of guarding that courthouse responded to the attacks.
From their post on Centre Street they saw the smoke, and at the direction of their commanding officer, they commandeered a jury bus and drove to the towers. Twelve officers went in but three never made it out. Among them was Officer Mitch Wallace.
On March 11, while the other victim's families marked the six-month anniversary of the attacks, one of those court officer's families marked another important date. It would have been Mitch’s 35th birthday.
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WATCH VIDEO [5:09]
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Court Officers
Captain William "Harry" Thompson was a 30-year veteran State Supreme Court officer who friends say was never complacent. His colleagues describe him as "spit and polish," the kind of man who you'd find on a recruiting poster for other court officers.
Married only three months, Officer Thomas Jurgens was an EMT with Army experience. Modest to a fault, he stayed in the shadow of more experienced officers who say he was on the verge of a wonderful career.
NY1 learned all this and more from two of Thompson and Jurgens’ mentors and best friends, Lieutenant Gerard Duffy and Major Reginald Mebane.
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WATCH VIDEO [2:31]
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