25th Anniversary of 9/11: Ireland Remembers Its Dead as Leitrim Honours Father Mychal Judge
Ireland marked the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks on Friday with commemorations across the country, from a moving memorial service in Keshcarrigan, County Leitrim, honouring Father Mychal Judge — the FDNY chaplain and son of Leitrim emigrants who became the first certified fatality of the attacks — to the opening of a new exhibition at Cavan County Museum and a documentary broadcast by Shannonside FM. At least 18 Irish citizens died in the attacks, with estimates suggesting that up to one-third of all victims had some degree of Irish heritage, reflecting the extraordinary integration of the Irish diaspora into New York City's workforce and emergency services.
Background
Father Mychal Judge was born Robert Emmett Judge in Brooklyn in 1933, the son of Michael Judge from Keshcarrigan, County Leitrim, and Mary Fallon from Drumkeeran. A Franciscan friar who had served as chaplain to the New York City Fire Department since 1992, he was beloved by the firefighters he served — a man of deep faith, extraordinary compassion, and a gift for meeting people exactly where they were. On the morning of September 11, 2001, he rushed to the World Trade Center as the towers burned, administering last rites to firefighters in the lobby of the North Tower. He died when debris fell as the South Tower collapsed, and his body was carried from the building by firefighters in an image that became one of the defining photographs of that day. He is officially recorded as Victim 0001 — the first certified fatality of the attacks.
Father Judge maintained a strong connection to his ancestral home in County Leitrim throughout his life, visiting Keshcarrigan in February 2000 to bring a stone from his father's house back to New York. The village has honoured his memory since 2001 with a peace garden that features a memorial designed to resemble the Twin Towers and a bench dedicated to him, built on land once owned by his father. The garden was originally opened in 2005 on the fourth anniversary of the attacks, and it has been a site of annual remembrance ever since.
The broader Irish connection to September 11 is profound. The FDNY and NYPD, both of which had significant Irish-heritage representation among those who died, lost hundreds of members on that day. The Irish community in New York — built over generations of emigration from every county in Ireland — was at the heart of the city's response to the attacks, and the grief felt in Ireland in the days and weeks that followed was genuine and deep. A national day of mourning was held in Ireland on September 14, 2001, and the anniversary has been marked with increasing solemnity as the years have passed.
Key Developments
In Keshcarrigan on Saturday, September 12, a memorial service was held to mark the 25th anniversary of Father Judge's death. The event included a procession led by the National Ambulance Service pipe band and the Kiltubrid Pipe Band to the local peace garden, where a new tree was planted to replace one previously lost to a storm. Local Sinn Féin councillor Brendan Barry had advocated for infrastructure improvements to the memorial garden, including a new footpath to accommodate visitors, and the anniversary service drew attendees from across the county and beyond.
Shannonside FM broadcast a documentary produced by Mike Mulvihill on Friday, September 11, honouring Father Judge's life and his enduring connection to County Leitrim. The documentary drew on archival material and interviews with those who knew him, providing a portrait of a man whose faith, humanity, and connection to his Irish roots made him one of the most beloved figures in New York's Irish-American community. In Tuam, County Galway, a memorial event was held at the Anne Marie McHugh Remembrance Park to remember Anne-Marie McHugh, a 35-year-old financial broker from Tuam who died in the South Tower and whose remains were never recovered.
RTÉ provided extensive coverage of the anniversary, including a report on the Cavan County Museum exhibition honouring Hugh Smith, the Cavan-born carpenter who survived the collapse and spent years working on the recovery effort. The national broadcaster also revisited its 2001 Liveline broadcast, in which host Joe Duffy spoke with Niall O'Dowd, editor of The Irish Voice, as the events were unfolding — a piece of broadcasting history that captures the shock and disbelief of that morning with extraordinary immediacy.
Why It Matters
The 25th anniversary of September 11 is a moment for Ireland to reflect on the depth and durability of its connection to New York and to the Irish-American community that has been such a significant part of the city's history. The attacks of 2001 were not simply an American tragedy — they were a tragedy that touched Ireland directly, through the deaths of Irish citizens and through the grief of communities across the country that had sent their sons and daughters to build lives in New York. The memorials and commemorations held across Ireland on Friday are an expression of that connection and of the enduring bond between Ireland and its diaspora.
The figure of Father Mychal Judge — an Irish-American priest who died administering last rites to firefighters, whose body was carried from the rubble in an image that has become iconic — embodies something essential about the Irish-American experience: the combination of faith, service, and community that has characterised the Irish contribution to New York for generations. His canonisation campaign, which has been active since 2021, reflects the depth of the regard in which he is held, not just in New York but in the Leitrim village where his father was born.
Local Impact
The commemorations in Keshcarrigan, Tuam, and Cavan are expressions of a grief and a connection that remain vivid in communities across Ireland a quarter of a century after the attacks. For the families of those who died — including the McHugh family in Tuam, who waited for news of Anne-Marie and who have never had her remains returned to them — the anniversary is a day of profound personal significance. For the broader communities in which those families live, the annual commemorations are an act of solidarity and remembrance that keeps the memory of the dead alive and honours the bond between Ireland and its diaspora.
What's Next
The memorial events in Keshcarrigan, Tuam, and Cavan will continue through the weekend, with further commemorations planned in Dublin and other cities. The Cavan County Museum exhibition honouring Hugh Smith will remain open through the end of 2026, with educational programming planned for schools and community groups. The canonisation campaign for Father Mychal Judge continues, with advocates in New York and Ireland working to advance the case through the Vatican's formal processes. The 25th anniversary has renewed public interest in the Irish connection to September 11, and further commemorative events and publications are expected in the coming weeks.
