25,000 Participate In Tunnel To Towers Run

The 8th Annual Tunnel to Towers Run was held. The 5K run/walk, which echoes the path that firefighter Stephen Siller ran from Brooklyn to lower Manhattan to help during the 9/11 attacks, attracted thousands, even in spite of the rainy morning. Frank Siller, one of Siller's brothers, said many were still trying to register yesterday morning, "At the end of it all, there were a couple of thousand people still waiting to register. We just let ‘em go. They wanted to participate. So I’m going to say we had about 25,000 people here, without a doubt."

Stephen Siller had September 11, 2001 off and was going to go golfing, but ran to the World Trade Center while wearing 74 pounds of firefighting gear. He was last seen at West and Liberty Streets. Frank Siller also told the Staten Island Advance, "If I tell you how many children, like ages 12 to 16, that volunteered, it’s inspiring. To see high school kids that don’t want to get out of bed in the morning and go to school, but they come here and volunteer at four o’clock in the morning, that’s inspiring."

The Tunnel to Towers run has raised $5 million so far, with the money going towards to burn victims and needy children. Stephen's House, a new New York Foundling facility that will house teenagers, is almost complete; here's information on how to donate.