Remains of Nearly a year after hijacked jets brought down the World Trade Center, the remains of former Honolulu resident Heather Ho have been positively identified.
Heather Ho,
9/11 victim,
identified
By Rod Antone
rantone@starbulletin.comHo's mother confirmed yesterday that she received word earlier this week from New York City medical examiners that Heather was identified as one of the 2,823 killed in the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center.
"It's nice to know that they found her," said Mary Ho last night from her home in San Francisco, "but we still miss her very much. Heather is still gone."
For a little while after Sept. 11, some of Heather's family members felt there was a chance she might have still been alive since some of her co-workers made it out of the North Tower before it came down.
Ho, 32, was executive pastry chef at the Windows on the World restaurant on the 107th floor of the building.
As the days passed, however, family and friends began to realize what was officially confirmed this week. On Sept. 30, Heather's services were held at her childhood alma mater, Hanahauoli School in Makiki.
"It really doesn't change anything," said her mother, who added there will be no additional ceremony because of the confirmation. "But it is good to have closure."
Family members said Ho, a 1987 Punahou High School graduate, had just taken the position in New York in May and had previously worked at the Boulevard, a popular San Francisco restaurant.
In 1999, food editors for the San Francisco Chronicle named Ho one of six "rising star" chefs, and she was named the city's pastry chef of the year by San Francisco magazine for 2000.
Ho graduated with honors from Boston University and from the Culinary Institute of America at Hyde Park, N.Y.
Ho is also survived by father Stuart T.K. Ho of Honolulu and grandmother Betty C. Ho of Honolulu. She is also the granddaughter of the late Honolulu financier and real estate developer Chinn Ho.
Last month, the New York City Medical Examiner's Office told the New York Times that it may be able to identify a total of only 2,000 of the 2,823 Trade Center victims.
