March 30, 2012 — A piece of steel from the World Trade Center will take an honored place in the University of Virginia's Newcomb Hall after a dedication ceremony, to be held Sunday at 2 p.m. in the Newcomb Hall Ballroom.

The ceremony culminates a student-led initiative for a permanent memorial to the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The steel, approximately 15 inches long and 5 inches tall, will share space with an American flag, once flown over the U.S. Capitol, given to the family of Glenn Davis Kirwin, a U.Va. alumnus and Cantor Fitzgerald employee who died in the attacks. Both artifacts will be housed in a display case handmade by Benjamin Hedman, an Albemarle County firefighter and U.S. Army veteran. The display will be housed on the third floor of Newcomb.

Among those speaking at Sunday's dedication are 1998 U.Va. School of Law alumnus William Baroni, deputy executive director of the New York Port Authority, who was instrumental in obtaining the steel; Allen Groves, U.Va.'s dean of students; and Evan Davis, a fourth-year government major from Virginia Beach.

Davis spearheaded the effort as president of the Student Association of Firefighters, EMTs, and Rescue-Technicians, a group comprising students who serve in local volunteer fire departments. He serves as a firefighter and emergency medical technician with the Charlottesville Volunteer Fire Company – one of 26 U.Va. students currently serving in local fire companies, he said.

For information, contact Davis at ed8h@virginia.edu or 757-406-0459.

— by Dan Heuchert