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'Our Uncle, Our Friend'

The last person that Glen J. Wall would usually think of doing a favor for was Glen J. Wall. A senior vice president at Cantor Fitzgerald who lived in Rumson, N.J., Mr. Wall served as a cheerful, unofficial ticket broker, maître d'hôtel and savings and loan association (even though he let many a loan slide). But Mr. Wall, 39, was most in his element when he spent time with, or just talked to acquaintances about, his two daughters, Payton, 4, and Avery, 3. "He needed nothing," said his wife, Diane. "It was all for his girls."

A few of his nieces even wrote a poem about Mr. Wall for his memorial service that conveyed his zest for life:

His piggyback rides and dances
Had everyone waiting for a turn
Music from our hands
Was just one thing he helped us learn.
But the most important thing he taught us
Was to live life on the 'Bright Side of the Road'
And enjoy it while you can
You'll always be in our hearts and minds
Our uncle, our friend, Glen.

Profile published in THE NEW YORK TIMES on December 31, 2001.