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SANDY — It catalyzed a nationwide movement to honor those affected by 9/11, but the original Healing Field may have seen its last flag.
It costs $40,000–$50,000 every year to put on the display, some of which is funded by sponsors, but the rest of which is funded by Colonial Flag. But the company behind the event says it has reached the point that it cannot do the display alone.
Paul Swenson, president of Colonial Flag, organized the first Healing Field display as a way to help visualize the enormity of human loss that occurred Sept. 11, 2001. On the one-year anniversary of 9/11, he displayed nearly 3,000 flags in front of the Sandy Hall: one for each human life that was lost to terrorism that September day.
He thought of it as a tangible expression of mourning — the flags, standing at 8-feet tall, were fitting representations of the people whose places they filled: small enough to be personal, but somehow, larger than life. It quickly grew into something he would never have imagined.
At least 50,000 cars drove by that first day to get a look at the field, according to Swenson. He said for some, it was the first time they had shed tears over the attack. Families and friends of those who were lost placed wreaths and flowers at the base of the flags. Others asked if he would recreate the display the following year.
He would do more than recreate the display in Sandy; he would spark a movement that would lead to more than 500 Healing Fields being recreated across the country over the course of a decade. The field garnered nationwide attention, and soon, displays could be seen for Memorial Day and Veterans Day, as well.
"A lot of people came not because they have a personal tie to someone who was lost on 9/11 — they might be going through a divorce, or have a sick child, and they just want a quiet place to heal," Swenson said. "There is a special spirit in there with the flags."
Swenson did not know how long he would continue to put on the Healing Field display, but soon realized it was out of his control.
"I can't turn this off," he said. "It's not really mine, anymore. It's the community's."
He said the community turns out in a big way, with everyone from youth groups to hockey teams volunteering every year to put up the 3,000 flags. Swenson said he's fielded calls this summer from groups asking how they can volunteer, but he has had to tell them he does not think the display will go on as planned.
"The field gets bigger depending on the support we get," he said. "And right now, it's looking like we'll only be doing the plaque."
There will be a dedication memorial for the placement of the plaques Sept. 9 in front of the Sandy City Hall. Swenson said he organized it for a Sunday so more people would have time to attend, but he thought this Sept. 11 is particularly meaningful.
"This is the first time since it happened that the anniversary falls on the same day of the week as the attacks," he said. "It happened on a Tuesday."
Other Healing Field events get varying levels of support from city and state governments as well as local businesses, he said. But the Sandy display, where it all started, has largely been a grassroots effort.
"It's not even about the money so much, though," Swenson said. "It's about the love."
