My wife and I were in New York City recently and visited the new 9/11 Memorial. It was a priority for me during our visit to see the memorial and find my classmate Mark Schurmeier’s name. There it was, in Section N-22 of the North Tower portion.

I did not know Mark well but knew him well enough to recall him fondly, after leaving Wake Forest, as a friendly and gregarious guy, very likable. We met in the theatre, in which Mark (together with several other Theta Chi brothers) was active.

My understanding is that Mark, as an employee of one of the national lending agencies in D.C., was attending a breakfast meeting at Windows on the World in the North Tower when the attack occurred.

I hate it that Mark’s name has to be among the victims of the attack.  At the same time, I found the memorial brilliant in conception and execution, and it will be a lasting place of remembrance and meditation. I was struck by the similarity of this memorial, and my reaction to it, to the Viet Nam memorial in Washington. One asks, predictably perhaps, how many more such memorials will we have to build?

Editor’s Note: Several Wake Forest students and alumni have received assistance from the Mark Schurmeier 9/11 Peace Fund, created to honor Schurmeier and to aid victims of political, social or religious terrorism. They include Brett B. Cahill (’07), Atul K. Mehta (’08), Jessica S. Yates (’09), Megan L. Donovan (’12) and Kelsey E. Donovan (’15). For information on the fund contact Bob Mills (’71, MBA ’80), associate vice president for University Advancement, at millsrd@wfu.edu.