September 25, 2023
Members of the Sigma Pi fraternity and Gamma Phi Beta sorority at St. John’s University teamed up on September 21 for their annual Tunnel to Towers Foundation fundraiser stair climb to support families impacted by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Before a group of members of the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) and New York Police Department (NYPD), the students symbolically climbed up and down the great stairs adjacent to Lourdes Hall in solidarity with the first responders who lost their lives in the attacks.
The event began with a short prayer service led by Rev. Hugo Medellin, C.M. ’05C, University Chaplain, Campus Ministry, who invited attendees to take a moment of silence in memory of those who answered the call that day and to support their families.
“September 11 was a hugely important day in the lives of New Yorkers. Almost everyone who lived in New York lost someone or knows someone who lost someone,” said Isabella Azzara, of Middle Village, NY, a junior majoring in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology and Vice President of Panhellenic Affairs at Gamma Phi Beta. “This is a way of keeping their memory alive.”
The fraternity- and sorority-sponsored Tunnel to Towers event has taken place on the Queens, NY, campus each year since 2017; it was canceled only in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. That year, the stair climb was replaced by an online donation campaign. It remains an important philanthropic initiative for Sigma Pi, whose St. John’s chapter was established in 2015.
“Growing up in Queens, 9/11 has always hit close to home,” said Gunnar W. Mills, President of Sigma Pi. “I lost several family members and other people I knew. It reminds me to recognize those who came before me, and to remember their story and the impact they had on the lives of so many people.”
The initial donation goal for the 2023 fundraiser was $1,000. By the time the students ascended the staircase for their first lap on September 21, they already had doubled that goal, with collected funds totaling $2,033.
“This is probably the most we have ever raised for this foundation—and we’ve far exceeded our goal every year that we’ve done this,” said Logan Palmer, a sophomore Biology student from Mansfield, CT, and Philanthropy Chair for Sigma Pi.
All donations raised by St. John’s students go directly to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, established in honor of firefighter Stephen G. Siller, one of 343 members of the FDNY who died during the 9/11 attacks. Since 2002, the foundation has raised more than $500 million for those impacted by the tragedy. Its annual Tunnel to Towers 5K Run & Walk was held on September 24 in Manhattan and Brooklyn, NY.
Juliana Hroncic, Philanthropy Chair of Gamma Phi Beta, was born after 9/11, but said it is important to remember the lessons gleaned from history. “As time goes on, it’s important that we don’t forget what happened that day and how awful it was,” said Juliana, who is enrolled in the six-year Doctor of Pharmacy program in the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.
Among the firefighters and NYPD officers in attendance was firefighter Dan Fanto, a 20-year veteran of the FDNY whose daughter Samantha is a junior at St. John’s and a member of Gamma Phi Beta. He was brimming with pride at the effort made by the St. John’s students.
“It’s nice to know that the University hasn’t forgotten 9/11,” Mr. Fanto said.
Logan said those who answered the call on September 11 were true heroes. “I can’t imagine doing this with 60 pounds of fire gear on my back in a burning building,” he said as he contemplated the hour-long stair climb. “They are real heroes and the reason we give back.”