6. The Story of the “Survivor Tree”

Standing as a living reminder of resilience, survival, and rebirth is the Memorial’s “Survivor Tree.” Found in the rubble at Ground Zero in October 2001, the severely damaged Callery pear tree was sent to the NYC Department of Parks for recovery and rehabilitation. In 2010, it was brought back and planted at the Memorial, alive and thriving with new smooth limbs growing from the marked, gnarled stumps. According to the 9/11 Memorial organization, the gnarled stumps create “a visible demarcation between the tree’s past and present.”