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50 People To Know: 9/11 Tribute Center Founder Lee Ielpi

NEW YORK (WCBS 880) -- In this week's 50 People to Know, we share the story of Lee Ielpi.

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9/11 Tribute Center
(Credit: WCBS Newsradio 880)

Photos: 9/11 Tribute Center

The retired FDNY firefighter founded the 9/11 Tribute Center in 2006, along with Jennifer Adams, after losing his son, Jonathan, in the attacks. He was 29 years old and married with two young sons.

9/11 Tribute Center
(Credit: WCBS Newsradio 880)

Ielpi spent months searching for the remains of his son and nearly 100 of his fallen friends.

9/11 Tribute Center
(Credit: WCBS Newsradio 880)

"We have an obligation – we meaning the public, worldwide – have an obligation to remember 9/11 and to use that as the catalyst to make tomorrow better," he says. "If we fail doing that, we fail. So our mission is just that – education, enlightenment, understanding what happened."

9/11 Tribute Center
(Credit: WCBS Newsradio 880)

The center not only teaches about the attacks, but how they changed the world.

You can find their full interview above.

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