Source/Credit: Sentinel and Enterprise | Fitchburg
By Emily Devlin | May 3, 2011
Some thought they'd never see the day.
But late Sunday night and early Monday morning, Americans learned what could be the most satisfactory news since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks: Osama bin Laden was shot dead by U.S. Navy SEALs.
Those who lost loved ones in the attacks received the news soberly.
Thomas Szocik, a Lunenburg resident whose son, Kevin Szocik, perished in the South Tower on Sept. 11 at age 27, found out bin Laden was dead Sunday night.
Szocik's surviving son called his parents after they'd gone to sleep to give them the news.
Szocik called bin Laden "the head of the snake," when it comes to the al-Qaida network, but he finds limited solace knowing he is dead.
"It doesn't bring Kevin back," Szocik said. "I'm happy they got (bin Laden) finally. We appreciate the armed forces of the United States."
Asked whether he expected the United States ever to find bin Laden, Szocik admitted he had doubts.
Leominster resident Marie-Elena Gray, whose brother, Thomas Pecorelli, was a passenger on one of the planes that hit the towers, was "shocked, surprised, and glad," when she heard the news. But it doesn't bring closure, she said.
"The fact that they got (bin Laden) doesn't change anything that any of us has been through," Gray said.
Leominster Veterans Agent Richard Voutour said for young veterans who have risked their lives fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq, a deep sense of satisfaction settled after the
story hit the airwaves with President Barack Obama's late-night press conference Sunday.
Voutour said he didn't catch Sunday's press conference, but learned at about 5 a.m. Monday that bin Laden was dead. Though it's been nearly 10 years since the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, Voutour said he had faith bin Laden would one day face punishment for his crimes.
"It was going to happen. You can't hide from the technology we have today," said Voutour, who served in the Marine Corps.
Voutour spoke briefly Monday evening at a candlelight vigil at Carter Park in Leominster. The Twin City Tea Party group organized the event as a way to honor those who have fought terrorism on behalf of the country since 2001.
"The big thing is, we're not here to celebrate the death of an individual, but to celebrate the lives of the individuals who helped us get the piece of success we had yesterday," said Justin Brooks, president of the Twin City Tea Party.
Several of the people who attended were friends and relatives of Pfc. Jonathan Roberge, a Leominster native who died in combat in Iraq in February 2009 at the age of 22.
Jonathan's younger brother, Andrew Roberge, spoke tearfully of his reaction to bin Laden's death.
"We've been chasing him for 10 years, and we finally did it," Roberge said.
Jeff Buono, a Leominster resident and New York native who attended the vigil, said bin Laden's death "kind of brought back 9/11 a little."
"It had been so long, it was almost anticlimactic," Buono said.
Dying quickly, with a bullet to the head, was almost too easy a death for bin Laden, said Dan Pothier. He said he'd almost prefer bin Laden had been brought back to the United States to face charges.
"A lot of people have suffered," Pothier said.
To mainstream, non-violent Muslim groups, like the Fitchburg Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, bin Laden's death only brings peace of mind.
"He killed more than 3,000 people. My view is, it's over and it was the best thing," said Bashir Mehmud, the group's imam.
Bin Laden gave peaceful Muslims a bad name, and used the name of God to do evil, Mehmud said.
"In my opinion, he wasn't a Muslim," Mehmud said.
Leominster Mayor Dean Mazzarella, who attended a portion of Monday's vigil, said he spent a sleepless night after learning of bin Laden's demise on the radio. He said he was "sucked in" by the coverage.
The fact that the United States military was able to hunt down and kill bin Laden, albeit nearly a decade after the attacks, is "symbolic," according to Mazzarella.
"Eventually, that's pretty much how this country operates," Mazzarella said.
-- edevlin@sentinelandenterprise.com
Read original post here: Little solace for local residents
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