Thieves steal trees from Slidell Sept. 11 monument

It was a crime that struck at the soul of Slidell and the United States.

A work crew with the Slidell Parks and Recreation Department discovered on May 5 that a person or persons had vandalized the 9/11 Memorial in Heritage Park and stolen three palm trees plus other plants from the site.

The 9/11 Memorial was officially dedicated April 26. The site has a part of a steel girder from the World Trade Center in New York City that was destroyed by terrorists on Sept. 11, 2001. There is also a piece of a wall from the U.S. Pentagon that was also attacked by terrorists on Sept. 11. The girder is mounted on a cement stand and is surrounded by a garden of begonias. Placed in a semicircle behind the girder were eight palm trees. All trees and plants were donated by several plant nurseries and private citizens. The memorial is dedicated to the first responders and all the victims who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001.

During the groundbreaking April 12, one of the people at the ceremony was Beverly Eckert, whose husband died during the collapse of the World Trade Center.

According to a May 14 police report, Martha Williamson with Parks and Recreation told officers three of the eight palm trees that are in a semicircle had been ripped out of the ground and taken away. Several begonias and wax myrtles in the garden around the 9/11 girder were also stolen, and the light that illuminates the girder had been broken.

“This really hurts me to the bone,” City Councilwoman Kim Harbison said when told of the robbery. She is the chair for the 9/11 Memorial Committee and has been working on the project for several years. “I’m so damned mad, I want to spit.”

The girder and wall had been procured by Rod Nunez and the Krewe of Bilge, who donated the pieces of the WTC and Pentagon to the city.

Mark and Gwyn Ellerman were able to get several local plant nurseries to donate the plants. The palms were donated by Saxon Becnel and Sons of Belle Chasse. Garden Spot Nursery of Slidell, Langridge Plant Sales and Kennair’s Nursery, also of Belle Chasse, donated the begonias, wax myrtles and other flowers to the memorial. The Ellermanns donated time and labor in designing and creating the landscaping around the memorial.

Gwyn Ellermann was not pleased with the vandalism and theft.

“It’s very disheartening to know there are individuals who are disrespectful enough to vandalize a site that has been dedicated to the memory of people who either innocently lost their lives or who selflessly gave their lives in order to save others,” Ellermann said.

Williamson told police she believed the palm trees were dragged to the parking lot because her crew found mulch and dirt forming a trail. She estimated the palm trees cost $75 each, and with the begonias and wax myrtle that were stolen, the loss was close to $300. She said the city electrician had repaired the light.

But for Harbison, it’s not about the money. She cannot understand why someone would do such a thing to a site that memorializes people who died.

“I would love to catch the culprits and make their lives miserable,” Harbison said.

Police said they have no leads in the case, but they are still investigating.