Dedication Ceremony for Tribute Quilt Honoring Victims of 9/11 Attack on America

At 10:30 a.m. on Monday, July 8, 2002, in the upper lobby of the U. S. Steel Tower, 600 Grant Street, Pittsburgh, Pa., the National Tribute Quilt will be dedicated in memory of those who lost their lives in the 9/11 attack on America.

Participating in the dedication ceremony will be Roy G. Dorrance, vice chairman and Chief Operating Officer of U.S. Steel; Kathy S. Crawford, representing the Steel Quilters, who designed and made the Tribute Quilt; Bishop Donald W. Wuerl, who will dedicate the quilt; Patricia A. Friend, International President, Association of Flight Attendants, AFL-CIO, who will represent the families and friends of the victims; Col. Raymond Scrocco, of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who will represent the Department of Defense and the thousands of military personnel fighting terrorism; the U. S. Steel Talent Team, who will lead the group in singing America the Beautiful; and Rev. Dr. David P. Gleason, Senior Pastor of the First Lutheran Church of Pittsburgh, who will deliver the closing prayer.

Following the dedication ceremony, the National Tribute Quilt will be displayed in the lobby of the U. S. Steel Tower and will remain there until July 19. The quilt will then travel to New York City to be displayed as part of the 9/11 anniversary exhibition at the American Folk Art Museum, and will become part of the museum's permanent collection.

The American Folk Art Museum is a leading cultural institution dedicated to the collection, exhibition, preservation and study of traditional and contemporary folk art from the United States and abroad. The museum recently opened a new building at 45 W. 53rd Street in Manhattan.

About the National Tribute Quilt

Last September, the Steel Quilters -- a group of four women who work in the steel industry in Pittsburgh -- set out to create a quilt that would serve as a memorial to the people who lost their lives in the 9/11 attack on America. Called the National Tribute Quilt, it would honor those who inspired a nation to patriotism.

The National Tribute Quilt -- a series of six quilts -- measures 8 feet high by 33 feet wide and contains more than 3,100 three-inch blocks. The name of each person who perished on 9/11 is inscribed on an individual block. The blocks of the four central quilts form an image of the New York City skyline to honor the people who lost their lives in the World Trade Center and the police, firefighters and emergency medical services personnel who died in the line of duty. The design was created from a photograph taken by Kathy Crawford while visiting the Statue of Liberty. Flanking the skyline are two separate quilts: one, with the image of two doves, is a tribute to the passengers and crews of Flights 11, 77, 175 and 93; and the other, bearing an eagle with a flag unfurled beneath, honors the men and women who died in service to our country at the Pentagon.

Kathy Crawford said, "Making quilts to memorialize events large and small has been an American tradition since our country was founded. We felt a National Tribute Quilt would be a uniquely American tribute to the victims and their families."

"We were overwhelmed by the national support we've received in response to postings on our Web site. Friends and families of the victims and quilters and sewers from all 50 states have contributed blocks for the project. We've also received blocks from countries as close as Canada and as far away as Australia."

The Steel Quilters are Kathy Crawford, Amber Dalley, Jian Li and Dorothy Simback. All four work for U. S. Steel at its Research and Technology Center in Monroeville, Pa. Kathy Crawford, who lives in Ford City, Pa., has been quilting for about 28 years. As a senior technician, Crawford oversees the testing of blast furnace burden materials in the corporate Raw Materials Laboratory. Amber Dalley, originally from Ogden, Utah, is new to quilting, but is an experienced seamstress. A senior research engineer, Dalley works on metallurgical problems and plant equipment failures for the Materials Technology and Modeling Group. Jian Li, Ph.D., of Murrysville, Pa., has been quilting for about two years. Li is a senior research project engineer and is the lead engineer for organic coatings for appliances and construction applications. Dorothy Simback, of Lower Burrell, Pa., has been quilting for about 10 years. Simback is a part-time clerical employee and assists in various duties for the product technology division.

Images of the National Tribute Quilt can be seen at http://www.angelfire.com/ny5/tributequilt.

CONTACT: John Armstrong, +1-412-433-6792, or Carlee Vargo, +1-412-433-6777, both of U.S. Steel.

PRNewswire -- July 3

SOURCE: U.S. Steel

Web site: http://www.ussteel.com/

Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/929150.html