Fox 25 Hails Franklin Native’s 9/11 Donation

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The Franklin Historical Museum was already planning to welcome Franklin native Paul Faenza , retired NYPD Sergeant, to the museum this coming Sunday, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

The plan was that Faenza would meet and greet some old friends but also share his first-hand account of September 11, 2001 and his grueling experiences in Manhattan during the days that followed.

Then, he made an unexpected discovery in a closet of his Vermont home: the very shoes he wore during the crisis, still bearing dust from the disaster. And, he thought, what better place to entrust with the historic items than the museum of his home town.

Bob Ward, a Fox 25 reporter, noted that he and Faenza had grown up near each other in Franklin, so he was especially motivated to tell the story and share it with others in the region (it was first broadcast early Wednesday evening). According to his report, on Sept. 11, 2001, Faenza headed up the Manhattan South Narcotics Squad for NYPD, and but for an unexpected delay, might have been in the area at the time of his attack. He recalled seeing the news at home, saying goodbye to his family and heading to the scene

He and his team arrived on at Ground Zero soon after both World Trade Center Towers collapsed and spent the next two weeks digging through rubble, providing security, and protecting the dead, noted the Fox report.

“We are honored that Paul thought of his hometown, and specifically the museum, for this very personal donation,” said Mary Olsson, chair of the Franklin Historical Commission, which oversees the museum. “It will make a connection between Franklin and the events of that terrible day for generations to come,” she added.

Faenza’s talk, part of the Second Sunday Speaker Series at the museum, begins shortly after 1 pm on Sunday, Sept. 12, at the museum at 80 West Central Street.

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A report earlier this year in the Vermont Journal, carried the news that the Big Eye’s bakery operated by Faenza and his wife Brigid, also a NYPD veteran, since 2014 in Ludlow, Vermont was closing as of February of this year. The article noted that the couple started the business, known for its pies, quiche, sausage rolls, and Irish soda bread, in their home in 2002.

No word on whether the Faenza's might be persuaded to bring those talents back to Franklin...

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