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Carlock, Morton Firms Help Create Flight 93 Memorial

The dedication of the 93-foot tall Tower of Voices
Keith Srakocic
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AP
People attending the dedication stand around the 93-foot tall Tower of Voices on Sunday, Sept. 9, 2018 at the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pa.

Two Central Illinois companies have played a role in the opening of the new Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania.

Fugate Inc. of Morton was contracted by the National Park Service to create 40 wind chimes for the memorial in Shanksville. That’s one chime for each of the 40 passengers and crew on board the flight who died on Sept. 11, 2001.

“It was humbling to be a part of this project,” owner Brett Fugate said. He is planning to attend an observance at the memorial on Tuesday to mark the 17-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks.

Passengers stormed the cockpit of the hijacked United Airlines flight. Authorities believe the plane was headed for the U.S. Capitol.

The company which makes musical instruments spent the last year creating the chimes for the memorial.

wind chimes
Credit Facebook / J&J Performance Powder Coating
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J&J Performance Powder Coating
J&J Performance Powder Coating was contracted to powder coat wind chimes used in the Flight 93 National Memorial.

J&J Performance Powder Coating of Carlock was a subcontractor for the project, sandblasting and powder coating each of the chimes.

Owner Jim Dolan said National Park Service Director Paul Smith called him to emphasize the significance of the project.

“He just wanted to make sure I was aware of the magnitude of the project, the fact that we were honoring those 40 families,” Dolan said. “I said, ‘Absolutely, none of that is lost on me, my friend.’ ”

Dolan added that Fugate is an expert in tuning of the tubes.

“Anybody can cut a pipe and hang it, but to tune it he actually had to tune them (for each note),” Dolan said.

Dolan said he’d love to see the exhibit someday.

“What’s kind of neat for me is the idea that something I did is going to be viewed by, who knows, tens of thousands of people and potentially dignitaries like our president, vice president, former presidents,” Dolan said. “They most likely at some point are going to make their way there and they are going to lay their eyes on something that was coated in beautiful Carlock, Illinois.”

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Eric Stock is the News Director at WGLT. You can contact Eric at ejstoc1@ilstu.edu.
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