Posted by
Hockey Dave on Saturday, September 09, 2006 8:55:59 AM
In Memory of Robert John Deraney
April 20, 1958 – September 11, 2001
A photo of Bob is available by clicking here.
This remembrance was written as part of the Tribute to the Victims of 9/11 project.
Robert died in the WTC tragedy of September 11, 2001 at the
age of 43. I’d like to take the time on the 5th
year anniversary of his death to honor his memory. I did not personally know Robert, but I have
found out a few things about him which I’d like to share with you.
First, is his obituary
in the New York Times published on October 6, 2001:
When Michele Haobsh learned last year that she had breast cancer, she called
Robert Deraney, her brother, and said: "What do I do?" He provided
answers, finding an oncologist and surgeon and accompanying her to chemotherapy
and radiation appointments. Long before she did, he joined Gilda's Club, for
people with cancer and their families, and made an appointment for her and her
family. "He got me through it," she said.
Mr. Deraney, 43, a financial consultant who graduated from Princeton and the
Wharton School
(University of
Pennsylvania class of 1983), was at a breakfast meeting at Windows on the
World restaurant, One
World Trade
Center on Sept. 11.
He was the "high energy" family organizer, Mrs. Haobsh said. He
planned the annual reunions of 70 relatives, ordering Lebanese food and
creating a game - Who Wants to be a Famillionaire? - based on Deraney trivia.
His Upper West Side
apartment was furnished with family antiques. He set an elegant table with
china and silver for 35 and ended evenings by playing the piano. "He
was," Mrs. Haobsh said, "pretty much perfect."
Below is a moving tribute from Princeton University
which sheds some light on Robert’s character.
Robert Deraney ’80
Robert Deraney was born on Apr. 20, 1958. He was killed Sept. 11, 2001,
during the terrorist attack on the World
Trade Center.
Bob was attending a breakfast meeting at Windows on the World restaurant.
Bob’s untimely death deprives our community of a living expression of the
kind of cultural understanding and open-mindedness that is so sorely needed to
bring peace to the Middle East. Bob, a
Lebanese American, was a Near Eastern studies major, and taught after
graduation at Lebanon Intl. College
in Beirut with Princeton-in-Asia.
Terry Wrong ’80, who was posted in Beirut
with Bob, recalls, “In a region where everybody has an opinion and usually a
closed mind to go with it, he was gentle, reasonable, and open to the views of
others.”
Deraney, a graduate of Wharton
Business School,
worked as a financial consultant and Internet specialist in NYC prior to his
death. Bob will be remembered as a deeply caring friend and devoted son and
brother.
Bob was an avid student of Arabic poetry
and an accomplished ballet dancer and theatrical performer on campus. He will
be deeply missed by those whose lives were touched by his humor and generosity.
Personally, I would have like to have known Robert. I think we would have been friends and his
death is a loss to us all. Robert was
loved and is certainly missed by friends, family, and even those that never had
the pleasure of meeting him. Rest in
Peace Robert.