ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) -- Two rusty, jagged-edged beams salvaged from the ruins of the World Trade Center were joined together Monday in the new bell tower of a Roman Catholic church near the Rio Grande.
One 30-foot-long beam was set horizontally on a corner of the church and extends into a chapel where people will be able touch it. The other beam, 20 feet long and sheared off at a sharp angle, is set vertically in concrete.
Both beams are rusted and discolored, possibly from the intense heat of the fire. Plans call for a large, glassed-in entry area to be built so they can always be seen, even when the church is closed.
``To have the two steel beams here ... is a sign of new life coming from the tragedy of the World Trade Center,'' said Archbishop Michael Sheehan, who toured the new bell tower.
Architect Isaac Benton said the raising of the 50-foot tower Monday marked the final step in converting a school gymnasium into a church. The parish's old church was demolished in the mid-1970s because of structural deterioration.
As the beams were trucked from New York last May, people along the way climbed up on the truck bed when the driver stopped to have a look and to touch the battered metal.
Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., parishioners and an Albuquerque neighborhood group worked together with New York City and church officials to bring the beams here.
``So many good things happened in this project,'' Sheehan said. ``Good conquers evil.''
