Jan & John Vigiano Say No to Barack Obama’s Visit to Ground Zero … “They are Honored but do not Want to be Part of a Presidental Photo-Op”

50 families were selected by the White House to attend Barack Obama’s Presidential photo-op to Ground Zero. One has to wonder how you pick 50 families out of the thousands of families that were adversely and dramatically devastated that fateful September day. However, there was at least one family that said, “no”. In the video below, the Vigiano family of Deer Park, Long Island, lost both their sons on September 11, 2001,  John Vigiano Jr., a 36 year old FDNY firefighter, and their youngest Joe Vigiano who was an emergency services detective with the NYPD. They declined the once in a lifetime meeting with the President because they did not want to be a part of a photo-op.

As 50 carefully selected families prepare to join President Barack Obama for a ceremony at the World Trade Center site Thursday, one of the invited 9/11 families have decided to pass on the Commander-in-chief’s visit.

Although many consider it to be a once in a lifetime invitation, the Vigiano family of Deer Park, Long Island have respectfully declined.

“If this form letter was the invitation, it was kinda lame,” John Vigiano told PIX 11 News when describing the email invitation sent to him from the White House.

One would think that if you are 50 families of the thousands that were affected by 9-11, you would get a special golden ticket … not so much.

What rubbed the Vigiano’s the wrong way was not what the email said, but how it was addressed.

“It says ‘Dear 9-11 family member,’ – no names” “ John Vigiano said, reading the invite aloud to PIX 11 cameras. “I don’t know if its disrespectful, but it doesn’t work for me.”