US Navy Super Carrier John C. Stennis Receives 9-11 Memorial Plaque Created in Pacifica

BY KATHY HALL

Commanders of the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis have received a 9-11 memorial plaque that contains fragments of the World Trade Center. The plaque was created in Pacifica.

The small shards of reddish granite and concrete were originally collected at Ground Zero by Joe Levins of Vericlaim Inc., in San Francisco. Within days of the World Trade Center tragedy, Levins' company had rushed him to New York to serve as the insurance industry’s lead claims adjuster at the disaster site. While going about his responsibilities there, he scooped up a sack of broken rocks from the rubble at his feet. He carried these home to San Francisco and gave them to his daughter, Jennifer Kretschmer of Pacifica. She marked each piece “WTC – 9/11/01” and offered them as keepsakes to local active-duty service members through the Pacifica Military Mothers club. One of those recipients was Navy LT Mike Hall of Pacifica. For several years, his family carefully stored the fragments away, hoping to eventually identify a place where the precious relics could be permanently displayed and appreciated.

The answer was revealed last summer. LT Hall was stationed aboard the 97,000-ton nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis, home ported in Bremerton, Washington. The ship’s commanders were generous in allowing civilian family members to tour the ship, and the Hall family made several visits to see the vessel. After observing the spirit and work ethic of the 5,000-member crew, the Hall family decided to offer the fragments to the Stennis commanders. The next step was to figure out how to present the fragments in a meaningful way. The pieces were small, irregularly shaped, and similar in appearance to common backyard rocks. Therefore, some form of verifiable documentation was also important.

For ideas, LT Hall’s parents Dave and Kathy Hall consulted Lionel Emde of Periwinkle Framing in Pacifica, whose company once framed a piece of the Berlin Wall. Emde created a finished display that was striking and somber. The elements included a Department of Defense photograph of Ground Zero, the fragments set inside a shadow opening and a brass plate with the words “Never Forget.” He selected a matte material with the texture of black crepe fabric associated with the period of national mourning for Abraham Lincoln. A simple black frame encased the arrangement. A written statement detailing the story and chain of custody of the fragments was attached to the back, with photographs of Joe Levins at Ground Zero as well as his Vericlaim company business card. 

LT Hall (second from left in photo above) presented the 9-11 memorial display to the Stennis commanders on his last day before departing the ship for his next assignment. Captain Joseph W. Kuzmick, Captain Michael Wettlaufer, and Command Master Chief Joseph L. Powers (left to right in photo above) expressed their appreciation and announced that the piece will be on permanent display in the ship’s museum. It will hang alongside an American flag found at Ground Zero by a New York City police officer who was also a Navy reservist.

LT Hall is a graduate of Terra Nova High School in Pacifica and the U.S. Naval Academy. He was a 1999 California Boys State Delegate sponsored by American Legion Post 238. Later this month he will deploy to Bahrain.