OKLAHOMA "SURVIVOR" STRONG PRAYER SERVICE 4PM FRIDAY MAY 24

[AMKor...@aol.com]

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Freyda Markow

917-517-3909

OKLAHOMA SURVIVOR STRONG

SEND OKLAHOMA YOUR LOVE 

JOIN US AT THEIR SURVIVOR TREE

NEAR CITY HALL 4PM FRIDAY MAY 24 

At the request and urging of Ground Zero volunteer Freyda Markow we will have a short prayer service at the Oklahoma City Survivor Tree in the Living Memorial Grove near City Hall tomorrow, Friday May 24 at 4pm. We will gather at the R train station located mid-block on Broadway near the pathway to City Hall. Many of us have enjoyed the hospitality, friendship and solidarity of our friends in Oklahoma City. Freyda's idea of a prayer at the tree to send a personal message of our support was beautiful and I'm thankful to be in New York to honor her request. Even though it's late notice if you can join us for a few moments at 4:00pm Tomorrow to stand OKLAHOMA SURVIVOR STRONG, please do. Freyda's right, "it will send a positive message of hope to a still shocked community". Anyone who has been to Oklahoma as part of our exchange is welcome to share a few words of your experience and your love and support for ALL the people of Oklahoma now during this great time of need. Hope to see you there, I'm honored to be asked by Freyda to offer this prayer for our friends and the people of Oklahoma.

A tree grown from a cutting of the Oklahoma City Survivor Tree was replanted in the Living Memorial Grove, located across the street from City Hall, next to five trees that were previously planted in the World Trade Center Plaza.

As part of the 5th Anniversary Commemoration, the World Trade Center Survivors’ Network, with the help of the NYC Parks Department, replanted a tree grown from a cutting of the Oklahoma City Survivor Tree.

The OKC Survivors’ Tree is an American elm that offered shade in the parking lot of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, prior to the bombing on April 19, 1995. The tree was badly damaged in the explosion, but survived and is now the centerpiece for the Survivor Circle in the Oklahoma City Memorial. The Survivor Tree is a symbol of human resiliency and a tribute to renewal and rebirth. We hope to solidify, with this planting, the deep bond that has developed between the people of Oklahoma City and New York – sister cities in grief, but also in the strength needed to survive.

The replanting ceremony was preceded by an interfaith gathering. Speakers representing the wisdom of the many faith traditions in New York City described what the planting ceremony means to them. Most traditions embrace tree plantings as symbolic of life and rebirth. And we hope the public expression of this common human thread will continue to provide both healing and uniting.

"This tree, a gift from the People of Oklahoma City, is the offspring of the Survivor Tree which remained standing in the wake of the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Building on April 19, 1995. It is planted here among the trees that survived the September 11, 2001 attacks upon the World Trade Center to symbolize our common bond, resiliency and renewal. May it forever represent hope and strength to endure. World Trade Center Survivors' Network, September 10, 2006"

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