It’s the Holidays at Tribute!

Tribute Museum volunteers, staff and friends of the museum gathered to remember an exceptional year of service, the 9/11 community and to catch up with peers over food and drink. Active docents ranging from Tribute’s first volunteer class to volunteers from the latest class 12 years later were on hand to celebrate their hard work and to celebrate each other for their extraordinary service in 2018.

The evening kicked off with a special video message from Tribute co-founder and President, Lee Ielpi, from his home in Florida praising the efforts that Tribute docents continue to display after more than 12 years. Jennifer Adams-Webb, co-founder and CEO, also welcomed the gathering and made remarks discussing the previous year’s accomplishments and those to look forward to.

The service recognition segment of the evening celebrated the inspiring commitment to service that 9/11 Tribute Museum docents display when sharing their profound 9/11 stories on guided tours, in the Storytelling Gallery and with school groups 7 days a week. From the Billy Quick Award, awarded to new volunteers who immediately embody the Tribute mission, presented in honor of late FDNY firefighter and Tribute docent William H. Quick, who passed away from site-related cancer in 2011, to awards for completed guided 9/11 Memorial tours (one guide reached an astonishing 650 (!!!) tours this year), over 100 awards were presented to Tribute’s courageous and resilient volunteers. The evening was a celebration of community, courage and perseverance, and is a testament to the commitment to educating and inspiring visitors from around the world and honoring the memory of those we lost on 9/11 and those we have lost since.

Many thanks to all those who helped make the evening such a special night, including the “TLA,” or Tribute Ladies’ Auxiliary, members of the board and the staff of Tribute.

On behalf the 9/11 Tribute Museum staff, we love and thank all 900+ volunteers that have joined the Tribute Family over the last 12 years. We always remember those that are no longer with us and we continue to keep their memories alive through the stories and service of Tribute docents. We also thank the thousands of visitors who have experienced the museum’s galleries, guided tours or Student Programs in 2018.

We look forward to another incredible year!