9/11 Memorial Dedicated

Eagle Scout of Honor Andrew Davis stands next to the 9/11 Memorial he designed

LA QUINTA – The city of La Quinta became the only city in the Coachella Valley to have an authentic piece of steel from the World Trade Center and Ground Zero dedicated on Wednesday, Jan. 23 at the Civic Center Campus.

The unveiling and dedication ceremony honored and remembered those who lost their lives September 11, 2001, and those still affected by the national tragedy. This event also doubled as an Eagle Court of Honor for the young man who helped bring the piece of history to the desert, Andrew Davis.

Davis, now 18, began this project as a means of obtaining his Eagle Rank. “This is something that hits very close to home for our family,” said Mike Davis, Andrew Davis’ father.

In September of 2001, Mike Davis was in New York working at the U.S. Open tennis tournament. He had planned to go to the Stock Exchange the next morning, but at the last minute, decided to come home to his family.

“The subway that we would have taken would have taken us right by the Towers,” said the elder Davis. A few years later, he showed his son an article about how a little boy helped get a memorial built in his town. Andrew, although he was only six at the time, has a distinct memory of the day that his dad could have been taken away from him, but out of luck was stuck at LAX instead.

“My son decided that this is something that everyone should remember and reflect on,” said Davis.

There were a lot of people involved in this project. Young Andrew raised about $20,000 in cash through fundraisers, the City of La Quinta donated more than $35,000 plus time and land.

After Andrew made a presentation during the January 4, 2011, city council meeting, artist Robert Radi spoke with staff at the City of La Quinta and said that he wanted to pay for the shipping of the steel. Radi also donated his time in designing the display and redesigning it after receiving the exact size of the piece of steel the city would be receiving.

“For Andrew to pick this as an Eagle Scout project was huge. We’ve grown a lot in the past couple years together, and to see the community come together to make this happen is incredible. So many resources and finances were given and so many touching stories told, everyone coming together to make this happen is really encouraging,” said Mike Davis.

The Memorial is located at 78275 Calle Tampico. For more information, contact Community Services Department 760-777-7090.

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