A Memphis firefighter, who went to New York to honor his cousin on the tenth anniversary of 9/11, turns out not to be related to the victim at all.
Lt. Nick Molinaro spoke to News Channel 3 the week of Sept. 11, 2011, as he and several other Memphis firefighters paid their own way to New York to honor their fallen colleaugues. Lt. Molinaro shared photos of a person he called his cousin, Carl Molinaro, who was a firefighter in New York.
But Carl Molinaro’s family just found the news story online and contacted News Channel 3 to straighten the record. Lt. Nick Molinaro is no relation.
“Carl doesn’t have this cousin. So now, I watch it three times, I call my husband; I call my daughters. Everybody’s watching it, and I’m like, 'where did this guy come from?'†said Joan Molinaro, Carl’s mother.
Joan Molinaro said that she still talks to her son every day, looking at his picture as she wakes up and goes to sleep. The heartbreak of losing Carl when he rushed to help in the World Trade Center is now worsened by the story of a stranger claiming to be a family member.
“Did it make him feel important to say that he lost someone on 9/11? Because I’d give anything in the world to say I didn’t lose anybody,†she said.
Lt. Nick Molinaro told News Channel 3 he would not make a statement Monday night, but would be willing to meet and clear the air on Tuesday.
He said that this was an honest mistake, with no ill intentions. He said his only intent was to honor Carl Molinaro.
In an interview in September at Memphis International Airport, Lt. Nick Molinaro showed several printed pictures of Carl. But Carl’s mother points out one of the pictures is not even of Carl.
In that interview, he said, “[Carl] had a wife, and a daughter, and then a son on the way.â€
Carl’s mother said the baby was already born. He was 23 days old when Carl died.
Lt. Molinaro also said in the same interview, “The memory will never be lost. And Carl didn’t die in vain. And you know, we’re just proud to keep one small tradition in the family going.â€
Lt. Nick Molinaro spoke to News Channel 3 the week of Sept. 11, 2011, as he and several other Memphis firefighters paid their own way to New York to honor their fallen colleaugues. Lt. Molinaro shared photos of a person he called his cousin, Carl Molinaro, who was a firefighter in New York.
But Carl Molinaro’s family just found the news story online and contacted News Channel 3 to straighten the record. Lt. Nick Molinaro is no relation.
“Carl doesn’t have this cousin. So now, I watch it three times, I call my husband; I call my daughters. Everybody’s watching it, and I’m like, 'where did this guy come from?'†said Joan Molinaro, Carl’s mother.
Joan Molinaro said that she still talks to her son every day, looking at his picture as she wakes up and goes to sleep. The heartbreak of losing Carl when he rushed to help in the World Trade Center is now worsened by the story of a stranger claiming to be a family member.
“Did it make him feel important to say that he lost someone on 9/11? Because I’d give anything in the world to say I didn’t lose anybody,†she said.
Lt. Nick Molinaro told News Channel 3 he would not make a statement Monday night, but would be willing to meet and clear the air on Tuesday.
He said that this was an honest mistake, with no ill intentions. He said his only intent was to honor Carl Molinaro.
In an interview in September at Memphis International Airport, Lt. Nick Molinaro showed several printed pictures of Carl. But Carl’s mother points out one of the pictures is not even of Carl.
In that interview, he said, “[Carl] had a wife, and a daughter, and then a son on the way.â€
Carl’s mother said the baby was already born. He was 23 days old when Carl died.
Lt. Molinaro also said in the same interview, “The memory will never be lost. And Carl didn’t die in vain. And you know, we’re just proud to keep one small tradition in the family going.â€