Discover 9/12: From Chaos to Community, a documentary about the volunteer effort at Ground Zero in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks.

... ordinary community residents are the true "first responders" in disasters ...

— Kathleen Tierney, Ph.D., Director, Natural Hazards Center, U of Colorado

Who Volunteered?

In the wake of the September 11 attacks, New Yorkers from all walks of life felt compelled to overcome their sense of powerlessness by volunteering to help out in the recovery effort. They brought in supplies, set up relief stations, and for ten months fed and cared for the recovery workers. Many deep and unexpected — even unlikely — relationships developed out of this.

Below, you can read about the circumstances that led our cast members to volunteer at Ground Zero twenty years ago.

Liz Carvajal

Liz was unemployed on September 11, 2001 and pursuing a career in medical administration. On the evening of the 11th she began volunteering at Ground Zero. Her first week there she slept in doorways, afraid that if she left the site she wouldn't be allowed back in. Eventually she worked at the Hard Hat Café where she met John and Denise Casalinuovo.

Because of the admiration she held for the police officers at Ground Zero, she decided to pursue a career in law enforcement, eventually becoming a Private Investigator.

She also met Alex Lopez, a firefighter, whom she married in September, 2010.

Alex Lopez

Alex, a firefighter, was assigned to the GPS unit, which had the task of tagging remains where they were found, as a way of mapping the destruction.

At Ground Zero, he also met Liz Carvajal, a volunteer, whom he married in September, 2010.

Alex died of a heart attack on July 21, 2011 at the age of 42.

John McGuire

John McGuire, owner of Gotham Seafood, rushed to the World Trade Center site on September 11 with his ice truck.

Looking for help to deliver and unload ice, he spotted John Casalinuovo and asked him to join in.

Eventually John M. was responsible for providing ice to canteens all over the city, particularly at Ground Zero, for much of the recovery effort.

John Cadue

John Cadue, is a longtime sales associate in the interior design field, hence he can "both organize and accessorize your national disaster."

Working at the Salvation Army, where he supervised the unloading of supplies, he met John Mcguire and John Casalinuovo and joined them delivering ice to ground Zero canteens, eventually staying on to volunteer at the site.

John has had two angioplasties and compromised breathing problems since his work at Ground Zero.

Steve Schreck

Steve, an FDNY Fire Marshal, was assigned to the Morgue. He met Debbie Kahn at the Hard Hat Cafe tent on the perimeter of the pit. Over time their friendship blossomed into love.

Steve retired from the FDNY in 2002.

Steve and Debbie were married in August, 2005.

Debbie Kahn

Debbie, a friend of John and Denise's living in their building, began volunteering at Ground Zero on the morning of September 12. She continued for the better part of the following ten months.

Working at the Hard Hat Café tent on the perimeter of the pit, she met Steve Schreck. Steve, an FDNY Fire Marshal, was assigned to the Morgue.

Over time their friendship blossomed into love. Steve and Debbie were married in August, 2005.

Denise Casalinuovo

Denise and her husband John Casalinuovo, Chinatown landlords, volunteered at Ground Zero nearly every day from the morning of September 12, 2001 to the closing of the site in May of 2002.

They continue to own and manage their building and every year host the reunion of volunteers and recovery workers there.

Denise now suffers from severe thyroid problems which she did not have before working at Ground Zero.

John Casalinuovo

John and his wife Denise Lutrey Casalinuovo, Chinatown landlords, volunteered at Ground Zero nearly every day from the morning of September 12, 2001 to the closing of the site in May of 2002.

They continue to own and manage their building and every year host the reunion of volunteers and recovery workers there.

John is the founder of Click4Good which helps support charities through online shopping.

Amalia Solano

Amalia Solano was in Washington, D.C. on September 11. When she heard of the attacks she got on a bus to New York City and arrived at Ground Zero to volunteer.

The bulk of her work over the following ten months involved working with the Fire Department digging for remains.

When the site closed, she went to Virginia to train to become a firefighter. Severely injured in her final month of training, Amalia was unable to realize her dream of becoming a firefighter, and shifted to a career as a physician's assistant.

Paul Geidel

Paul Geidel retired from the FDNY in 1976 after twenty years of service. His three sons followed in his footsteps and all became firefighters.

On September 11, Paul's son Gary perished with the rest of his unit, his father's old unit, Rescue 1.

Paul immediately returned to service and, joined by his other sons Ralph and Michael, spent the next nine months searching for Gary's remains and those of everyone else who died in the attack.

No trace of Gary has been found to date. Paul Geidel died on Oct. 31, 2017.

Ralph Geidel

Ralph Geidel retired from the FDNY in 1985. He moved to California in 1995 to mine gold.

On September 14, 2001, he returned to New York City to search for his brother, Gary, a New York City firefighter with Rescue Co. 1, who was in the World Trade Center on 9/11.

Ralph worked at Ground Zero for over 230 days and earned the nickname "The Crow", for his uncanny ability to locate human remains in the vast pile of rubble. His brother Gary, was never found.

Ralph was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2003, just 14 months after leaving the site. He died of site-related illness on Oct. 21, 2014.

Joseph "Toolie" O'Toole

Toolie worked at Ground Zero with the FDNY from 01/06/02 to 06/06/02 supplying the members of FDNY with water or tools or what ever the "men" needed.

He retired from the FDNY on September 30, 2006 after 20 years of service at Ladder 41 in the Bronx.

Toolie succumbed to 9/11-related cancer on December 12, 2016.