STEP BY STEP

STEP BY STEP — Union City Fire Department Lt. Mike Fussell climbed the winding concrete staircase at Discovery Park of America early Saturday as he participated in the eighth annual 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb, which raised funds for the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. The climb pays tribute to those who lost their lives 25 years ago in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, among them 343 New York City firefighters. Each participant in the local event, many while wearing full gear, set out to climb the stairway of DPA’s Cooper Tower 10 times, the equivalent of the 110 stories of NYC’s World Trade Center. The event is not a race, but rather a way to remember those who died and to symbolically complete their mission.