PPC to feature art exhibit, candle lighting for Sept. 11

The long narrow room is wallpapered with sheets of paper holding responses from people at… The long narrow room is wallpapered with sheets of paper holding responses from people at Pitt, written within days of Sept. 11, 2001. A table is set up showing local newspapers from a year ago, all with gripping photos and headlines. Other tables show pictures of Ground Zero and memorials made in Somerset County.

The exhibit, “September 11 – A Remembrance,” is taking place in the Conney M. Kimbo Art gallery in the William Pitt Union and is part of Pitt Program Council’s events for the Sept. 11 anniversary. The exhibit also allows people to write greeting cards that are going to be mailed to a variety of people by the Pitt Red Cross, including soldiers fighting terrorism abroad.

PPC will also be showing the HBO documentary “In Memoriam” in the Union Assembly Room. The film will be shown at 10:10 a.m., to commemorate the crashing of United Flight 93 in Somerset County. It will also be shown every hour and a half starting at noon and ending with the last show at 9:11 p.m.

“We wanted to make sure everyone could see it,” said Matt Foreman, film director for the PPC. “I’m expecting 9:11 [p.m.] to be the biggest crowd, that’s when I’m gonna go see it.”

According to Foreman, the documentary was not shown very much on HBO because they did not want to exploit the Sept. 11 tragedy, and HBO wanted no payment from PPC for showing the film.

At dusk, 911 white luminary bags filled with sand and candles will light up the WPU Bigelow lawn and the Cathedral lawn. People are invited by PPC to help light the candles to commemorate the tragedies.

“People are welcome to come down and light a candle,” Forman said.

The PPC has issued no alternative place for the candle lighting if it happens to rain.