Trends for June 24, 2002

Lisa Ferguson

Monday, June 24, 2002 | 8:23 a.m.

Paying homage

Nearly 10 months have passed since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, and a Florida company is working to make certain that those who perished that day will not be forgotten.

"The Heroes of the World Trade Center Memorial Card Project" was recently introduced by Chestnut Publications. The color cards, about the size of collectible baseball cards, spotlight emergency workers, rescue dogs, office workers and others who lost their lives.

The cards feature family photos and information about those killed. Pictured in his white chef's uniform, Benjamin "Keefe" Clark was born June 30, 1962, and worked as executive chef for a food services company in Tower 2.

Clark, an ex-Marine, and three maintenance workers were last seen on the 88th floor helping a woman in a wheelchair. Clark's wife, La-Shawn, wrote a tribute to her late husband, which appears on the back of his card:

"He cooked everyday, loved music, comic books, playing video games with the children, and he made sure I was pampered beyond my wildest dreams."

A photo of a tattoo on the back of John Guman featuring the towers and the face of his late wife, Babita Guman is featured on Babita's card.

Born April 25, 1968, Babita worked for a trust company on the 97th floor. The Guyana native was the mother of two daughters.

"Black Tuesday" is the title of the poem that appears on FBI Agent Leonard W. Hatton's card. The prose was penned by his daughter, Jessica. It reads, in part:

"A tragedy it takes/To open our eyes/It took a whole nation/By complete surprise."

Chestnut will produce a 202-card series, which it will begin shipping by the end of this month, costing about $2.50 per pack. A royalty payment (in the form of a charitable contribution) will be presented to the families involved with the project.

For information about the cards, visit 911herocards.com. To order, call (866) 261-8565.

King of Zen?

On a much lighter note, author David Rosen is giving props to The King's spirituality.

The publishers of "The Tao of Elvis" (Harvest Original/Harcourt, $12) claim the book is the "first endeavor to illustrate Elvis' Taoist nature and to interpret his never-ending search for purpose and meaning."

We're not sure what that's supposed to mean, or if the book is intended to be of the self-help nature guiding readers down spiritual paths of their own. (Would a pit stop at Elvis' mansion, Graceland, be in order?)

In any case, the paperback is full of quotes from philosophers, as well as politicians, entertainers, various Elvis hangers-on and The King himself about the music legend's outlook and impact on life. Among the comments: