My brother was an architect. As part of his professional development, he attended conferences. On one occasion, there was a drawing at a conference. The attendees put their business cards in a glass bowl and the card that was picked would win a weekend in the city, including a stay at the Waldorf Astoria, dinner for two and tickets to a Broadway show. My brother’s business card was selected, and, instead of using it for himself, he gave the winning ticket to me. He said, he wanted to thank me for taking care of our mother before she passed away. The Waldorf Astoria was breathtaking! The dark, oak wood in the lobby and the oriental rugs were stunning. I couldn’t help but think about all the famous people who had stayed there. Joe and I went to dinner together and afterwards attended a showing of the Broadway play, “Showboat”. It was a memorable weekend spent with my brother and I remember tenderly his kindness and his generosity.

I often told my brother how I loved the opera and would be thrilled to go to The Metropolitan Opera House in the city. He agreed to go with me. We had dinner at an Italian restaurant. I expected a traditional Italian meal, but my brother had other ideas in mind. When I ordered ravioli, I received a plate of black ravioli. My brother told me the ravioli were made from octopus! I hate to think what the filling was made of. Trying to be polite, I did my best to finish my meal. Joe was filled with mischievous giggles throughout, telling me how this was a trendy restaurant. We took a cab to Lincoln Center. Joe knew my suburbanite’s fears of Manhattan, and he never made me take the subway. “Madame Butterfly” was wonderful. We left just before the end. Joe wanted to get me home early. On our way outside, someone was looking for tickets. I tried to give my ticket to him, but Joe rushed me away telling me not to talk to strangers! I remember fondly my brother’s kindness, his wicked sense of humor and his protectiveness.

During the 1980s, I met Joe and his wife, Cheryl in the city several times. One time, I took the train from Ridgewood to the station in the World Trade Center. I was expecting to find a typical train station. I was completely surprised by what I was found when I arrived. It was like a huge shopping mall underground. There were shops, businesses, kiosks, and numerous escalators. On my visit, Joe took me upstairs and inside the lobby of the World Trade Center. The building seemed dull and boring to me. Joe explained the simplicity and complexity of the design of the windows. On September 11, 2001, that train station was one of my first thoughts. I thought about all the people in the station stopping to get a newspaper or a cup of coffee that morning on their way to work. The shop keepers opening their stores for the day’s business, checking their inventory in back rooms, vendors making their deliveries completely unaware of the events above ground.

When my daughter, Joanne came along, we continued to visit Joe in the city. Her first visit to a museum was The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Joe accompanied us on this trip. He met a friend there named Mariska. She was Joe’s friend, Selim’s girlfriend. They were happy to see one another. He kissed her gently on the cheek and introduced me and Joanne to her. She told us she had heard so much about us from Joe. I thought to myself, how wonderful it was to have a friend like Joe. Joanne’s first Broadway show was “Beauty and the Beast” and Joe attended the play with us. We had lunch together prior to the play. When we arrived at the theatre and found our seats, Joe left and got Joanne a booster seat so she would have a better view of the stage. He joined us on our visits to The Bronx Zoo, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Haydn Planetarium. Now that he is gone, I am so grateful that we made all those memories of my brother Joe with my daughter Joanne.