Tuesday, September 11, 2001, was a pivotal day for America and the world. From the horror of the September 11 attacks has grown a fierce resolve that terrorism may wound, but will never defeat us. The global community has united with the American people to battle against the insanity that we have endured and we, as Americans and citizens of the world, will prevail over this catastrophic day.

For all, but particularly for those of us who lost loved ones in the attacks on the Pentagon, the World Trade Center, and at Shanksville, September 11 was a day of immeasurable, profound loss and sorrow. As family members of those lost in the attack on the Pentagon, we ask that you search your souls and envision a memorial that inspires visitors to contemplate what the attack means to them personally, to us as family members, to the community, to the country, and to the world.

Visitors should comprehend that our loved ones were murdered simply because they were living and working in, and enjoying the benefits of, a free society. The memorial should instill the ideas that patriotism is a moral duty, that freedom comes at a price, and that the victims of this attack have paid the ultimate price. Indeed, the memorial should bring an understanding that all of us have paid severely. Our loved ones' deaths have ended the ripple effect of their lives touching many others through the universe; their loss has created an incalculable emptiness.

We challenge you to create a memorial that translates this terrible tragedy into a place of solace, peace, and healing.

"The memorial should instill the ideas that patriotism is a moral duty, that freedom comes at a price, and that the victims of this attack have paid the ultimate price...We challenge you to create a memorial that translates this terrible tragedy into a place of solace, peace, and healing."

Family Statement
The Pentagon Memorial Family Steering Committee

On September 11, 2001, terrorists crashed Flight 77 into the Pentagon, killing the 59 passengers on board the aircraft and 125 military and civilian personnel who were working inside the Pentagon.  Shortly after the attack, the United States Congress authorized the Secretary of Defense to create a permanent memorial on the grounds of the Pentagon. 

The Pentagon Memorial park consists of 184 memorial units, each of which are dedicated to an individual victim by its unique placement within the collective field. The field is organized as a timeline of the victims' ages, spanning from the youngest, three-year-old Dana Falkenberg, to the oldest, 71-year-old John D. Yamnicky. Each memorial unit is located on its respective age line—thin metal strips that cross the memorial park. This ordering develops a powerful understanding of the broad range of the lives lost, from the youngest child to the oldest adult.

The "terrazzo" finish of each memorial unit rises dramatically from the ground on one end, and on the other end hovers over a small pool of lighted water in the surrounding gravel field of the park. Each unit has a specific directionality to distinguish victims on board Flight 77 from victims within the Pentagon.

The memorial units representing the 59 lives lost on Flight 77 face so that when reading the name of the victim to whom that unit is dedicated, the visitor to the memorial park faces the sky. When standing at a memorial unit dedicated to a victim who was inside the Pentagon, the visitor will see the victim's name and the Pentagon in the same view. 

The simple but elegant memorial units are at once a glowing light pool, a cantilevered bench and a place for permanent inscription of each victim's name. The interplay between the flowers of surrounding crape myrtles, the crunch of gravel underfoot, and the water flowing under each bench provides an experience in the park that is touching and moving, one that creates a place of peace and remembrance, and allows for individual interpretation by each visitor.  The Pentagon Memorial, therefore, serves a much greater purpose than just remembering the 184 people who were killed that day. This memorial provides a place for future generations to remember and reflect on September 11, and its significance for us and our nation. This memorial is a place of solace where visitors can renew their faith in, and commitment to the values that we all share. 

The Pentagon Memorial Fund, Inc. was incorporated in May 2003 as a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization to raise the private funds necessary to design, build and maintain the Pentagon Memorial.

Washington Headquarters Service (WHS) holds overall responsibility for the project, with Pentagon Renovation & Construction Program Office (PENREN/C) serving as the construction agent.  Real Estate and Facilities (RE&F) serves as the project manager to secure, manage and account for funding as the project progresses.  Centex-Lee LLC was awarded the design-build contract to complete the Pentagon Memorial.