A patriotic Long Island restaurateur went the extra mile to shut down airspace above his eatery to host a massive, first-of-its-kind drone tribute to first responders and the victims of 9/11, all for a very simple, but touching reason.
“The slogan is ‘Never Forget,’ but, unfortunately, people are forgetting,” Embassy Diner owner Gus Tsiorvas told The Post.
“That’s what I’m trying to do. I’m trying to remind people that we should never forget what first responders did all those years ago during 9/11,” added Tsiorvas, who drapes his Bethpage establishment with troves of American flags with a “Home of the Brave” sign.
He arranged for over 350 synchronized drones to light up the night sky in more than 10 different formations, honoring the NYPD, FDNY, Port Authority and other rescuers in about 12 minutes over his Hempstead Turnpike parking lot on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Tsiorvas bills his badge-filled business as “a second home” for police and rescue, as NYPD and FDNY members make up a bulk of his customer base.
“The thought of their contributions being overlooked and underappreciated is not something I’m willing to tolerate,” he said.
His drone setup — a first for the area — is so large-scale that Tsiorvas is using a nearby middle school soccer and football field as a staging zone, and several streets surrounding the Embassy will shut down due to the high turnout expected, he said.
“It touches me that the community is making this bigger than I could ever have imagined,” added Tsiorvas, whose brothers and sisters are all police officers.
“Originally, this was meant just to be a moving tribute and a thank you, but it’s become something much more.”
As word caught on about the event in a matter of days, Nassau County wanted to make it an even bigger commemoration and quickly partnered with the diner.
“Nassau County was devastated by the attacks of 9/11 with a tremendous loss of life, including my nephew, Sgt Tommy Jurgens,” County Executive Bruce Blakeman told The Post.
“I commend Gus for keeping their memory alive in a very unique way with this drone show,” added Blakeman, who is hosting a Thursday night 9/11 tribute concert with Long Island-based “presidential tenor” Chris Macchio at Eisenhower Park.
Now, Nassau PD will be playing taps on trumpets as its pipe band plays “Amazing Grace” along with more tasteful notions of tribute.
“I even ordered 2,000 mini flags to hand out,” said Tsiorvas, whose pro-cop and country attitude lured in Lawrence Jones and Fox and Friends for a live show earlier this year.
The restaurateur wouldn’t disclose a final number, but said, “whatever you think it will be, it’s much higher.”
“It’s not about the money. It’s about sending the right message and reminding the world that we here on Long Island will always be proud to back the blue,” he said.
“I’ve already had a couple of widows from 9/11 who lost their husbands come up to me and say thank you. They were crying.”
He added that the attitude he takes towards showing adoration and appreciation for the nation, police, and other first responders has become the diner’s bread and butter rather than being panned.
“A customer just came in to simply say ‘thank you,’” Tsiorvas said.
“He said, ‘everywhere else we go, just not like this. It was just so nice and refreshing to see somebody say ‘we love America’ when so many people are running away from that nowadays.’”
Days following the elaborate tribute, Tsiorvas is also holding onto a pipe dream that President Trump will stop by Embassy Diner for a bite to eat after appearing at the nearby Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black golf course.
“It would be our honor to serve our president,” he said.
