The Wilton Woods 9/11 Memorial Garden
Alexandria, Virginia
This garden site has become a transformative community endeavor when members of the community turned a half-acre power company easement into a memorial garden after 9/11. Following 9/11 several individuals of Alexandria’s Wilton Woods community took the initiative to create a Memorial Garden honoring the victims of the 9/11 terror attack
s, first responders, and all men and women entrusted with the defense of our freedoms. Work began on September 21, 2001, to transform an overgrown vacant lot into a half-acre park-like setting. Neighbors from the ages of 7 to 70 and businesses in the community worked countless Saturday mornings until the garden was completed. A dry creek bed, retaining wall and mulch layer prevent erosion, while a berm redirects storm water. Trees and shrubs were planted in honor of first responders, and the garden incorporated ashes from the Pentagon crash site, concrete and an American flag from Ground Zero and rock and soil from Shanksville. In recent years, native plants have also been added to the landscape. The Garden has received several awards including those from the National Capital Area Federation of Garden Clubs, Inc., National Garden Clubs, Inc., the Fairfax County Tree Commission, and a greatly appreciated grant from SHELL Oil Co. It was also featured in an article in the Washington Post and on local television news. It is now listed and described in the US Forest National Living Memorials Project Registry at www.livingmemorialsproject.net and is recognized by Fairfax County as a Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation site. The garden is cared for by neighborhood volunteers and the Shadow Walk at Wilton Woods Community Association.
