Tuesday, March 06, 2012

ABC WEDNESDAY-"H"-Heartbreaking Memorial


On the morning of April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh parked a rental truck with explosives in front of the Alfred E. Murrah building in downtown Oklahoma City and, at 9:02am, a massive explosion occurred which sheared the entire north side of the building, killing 168 people. 

Field of Empty Chairs

The 168 chairs represent the lives taken on April 19, 1995. They stand in nine rows to represent each floor of the building, and each chair bears the name of someone killed on that floor. Nineteen smaller chairs stand for the children. The field is located on the footprint of the Murrah Building.
We chose to take the southern route home from Santa Fe to Saint Paul, Mn for the express purpose of viewing this heartbreaking Memorial site.


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18 comments:

  1. un beau choix, et un bel hommage

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  2. A beautiful and haunting memorial.

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  3. I remember this day very well. My parents both worked downtown and sometimes my Dad had business in this building. I was fortunate that no one in my family was injured, but I still feel for the Oklahomans who lost loved ones. Every time I go back to this memorial I get a little teary and choked up. It's a moving place.

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  4. Sad but beautiful memorial, Kate.

    OKC is not my hometown but I have been there so many times on my way to my hometown (Quincy, IL) that it sometimes feels that way. My brother-in-law lived there for many years so it made a great stopping place with lots of things to see.

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  5. Anonymous10:34 AM

    I also remember this day. Seems like a long time ago now.

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  6. Thank you for this. I have never seen the memorial - didn't even know it existed, for that matter. It's an important memorial. And probably we need to remember that McVeigh was a home-grown terrorist!

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  7. So glad that you were able to visit and pay your respects. It's a beautiful memorial.
    Jane x

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  8. Very moving memorial. Blessings, Debbie

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  9. Beautiful memorial.

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  10. There is something about a mass of identical simple forms lined up in neat rows that draws emotion from the viewers. That is the effect of the American Cemetery in Normandy. This is also a powerful monument. Thank you for showing it.

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  11. I think that Jack expressed this beautifully. The impact of the rows and rows brings back the memories of a moment that changed our world. Very dramatic

    Bises,
    Genie

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  12. I've heard about this and seen photos. Thank you for sharing your impressions of it. It is very moving. We'll never forget that terrible act.

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  13. I recognized it immediately.

    I knew someone who was in a building across the street, and the blast severely injured her (force of the blast threw her against a wall) for many month.

    Sad day.

    ROG, ABC Wednesday team

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  14. Your shot brings out the gravity of the memorial - the starkness of the chairs lined up with the spreading green of the tree hovering over. I love it.

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  15. A memorial of simplicity, thought and power. A terrible event.
    Joy, ABC Team

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  16. I like the simplicity of this memorial. It makes me feel so sad that one person could cause so much hurt.

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  17. That is so sad!

    House in the Prairie
    Rose, ABC Wednesday Team

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  18. Oh yes I well remember that awful day. This is such a stunning memorial, Kate. Perhaps it's not the right question but do people ever sit on a chair and remember, or is it not the done thing...?

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