No Closure, But Husband of 9/11 Victim from Windsor "Satisfied" with Justice Served

When the two World Trade Center towers fell in Lower Manhattan almost 10 years ago, dust clouds covered the island of New York and sent shock waves throughout the nation. The attacks left physical damage in rural Pennsylvania, the District of Columbia and New York City's financial district, but the emotional toll affected every town in America, including Windsor.

Margaret Orloske, 50, of Windsor, was one of the victims who lost her life in the attacks that day. She was on the 96th floor of the north tower.

Orloske worked in knowledge management as the vice president of Marsh & McLennon and commuted 2 1/2 hours from Windsor to Manhattan. The hustle and bustle of New York was worlds away from the Orloske's 18th-century reproduction home in Windsor's Settlement Hill neighborhood, a quiet and lovely place where she would never return after September 11, 2001.

Nearly a decade of war, tens of thousands of American, Iraqi and Afghan lives lost, and a manhunt for the individuals responsible finally reached a watershed moment Sunday night when President Barack Obama announced the death, by American hands, of Osama Bin Laden, the leader of Al-Qaeda and the man allegedly responsible for the attack.

Bin Laden's death may not bring an immediate end to American military action in the Middle East, but it does provide a sense of justice served for innocent lives lost, according to Margaret Orloske's widower, Duane.

"There is a satisfaction in him being brought to justice," Duane Orloske said Monday. "But as far as there ever being closure, I don't think that will ever happen."

President Obama addressed the nation Sunday, saying that he had directed the head of the Central Intelligence Agency "to make the killing or capture of Osama Bin Laden the top priority of our war against Al-Qaeda."

"I'm really proud of the way President Obama handled the whole situation," Duane Orloske said. "Very clean, with not a lot of people hurt... It sends the right message to the terrorists."

However, Orloske added, "It's something that should have been handled this way a long time ago ... Instead, it was turned into a war against the Islamic world. I'm just so pleased with the way the Obama administration handled it."

The isolated targeting and killing of bin Laden is something that Windsor Mayor Don Trinks said, "sends the correct message to the Muslim community: that there is a far, far majority of peaceful, loving Muslims, and we, as a society, do not brand that whole group [as extremists]."

Efforts to unify Muslim and non-Muslim residents of Windsor, where the Islamic Center of Connecticut is located, have been made since the towers fell, Trinks recalled Monday.

Following Sept. 11, 2001, the town held a vigil on the town green. Members of the Islamic Center came to the green to show their support for those who lost their lives on that day — victims that were of numerous faiths, including Muslims.

There is a living memorial dedicated to Margaret Quinn Orloske in the Settlement Hill Development, located off of Rt. 159. The memorial is also dedicated to those who risked their lives in the attempt to "recover the remains of those who died in the World Trade Center attacks," a plaque reads. The memorial is open to the public.

Orloske's memory is being kept alive outside of Windsor as well. A garden in the historic section of Deerfield, Mass. was dedicated to Orloske, who was an open hearth cooking enthusiast, known for cooking her Thanksgiving dinner in her colonial reproduction home's cooking hearth.  According to the Amherst Bulletin, Orloske often took cooking classes in Deerfield, combining her love for cooking and history for authentic, colonial meals.

Windsor High School is home to a memorial as well. An iron structure located in the school's courtyard is open to the public, depicts a sillouette of the World Trade Center towers and is surrounded by flowers.

To read more about Margaret Quinn Orloske, follow the links below:

Dedication of Open Hearth Garden to Margaret Quinn Orloske

Tribute to Margaret Orloske

Duane Orloske's Sharing (Voices of September 11)

In Memoriam: Margaret Quinn Orloske (Voices of September 11)