It’s hard to believe it has already been five years. So much has happened in the last few years. Today, we remember and pay tribute to those who lost their lives that tragic day. I think focusing on the good that these people did is better than focusing on the tragedy and negative feelings we may still harbor. Today, I pay tribute to Tyler Ugolyn.
Tyler was just 23 and had recently begun working at the World Trade Center for Fred Alger Management, Research Associate. Though I did not know Tyler personally what I have learned is that he was a very bright light in the lives of those he touched. He loved his family and friends. He played basketball for his high school in Ridgefield, CT where they have now created a memorial to him. He attended Columbia College where he played for two seasons on their basketball team as well. He was a devout Christian who often lent his time to local charities and soup kitchens. He was always willing to help a friend in need. Tyler is remembered fondly by even those who only met him for a moment http://www.sept11thmemorial.com/last_name.asp?Letter=U. My thoughts and prayers go out to those who knew him today as I know they still dearly miss him.
On Tyler Ugolyn’s Web site is a handwritten note from his grandmother: Yesterday is history. Tomorrow a mystery. Today is a gift from God!
The words resounded through the life of Mr. Ugolyn, a 23-year-old Columbia University graduate who started his dream job last summer as a research associate with Fred Alger Management Inc., in the World Trade Center. At 6-foot-4, he was an accomplished athlete who played basketball for Columbia before being injured. Not to be defined by a single thing, he was known for a constant smile and infectious, if offbeat, laugh. He helped start a youth basketball program in Harlem, but was also known for his love for his 1992 GMC Typhoon (also featured prominently on the Web site).
“He did many things diligently and with passion,” said Zachary Schiller, a friend and teammate at Columbia. “The way he ran drills in basketball. The way he went to church every Sunday. He did it without complaining and would sort of remind everyone through his effort and example.”
(Article courtesy of the New York Times, January 20, 2002)
Let us also pay tribute to Judson Cavalier. His 2996 tribute can be found here http://chattiekat.blogspot.com/
Thank you for your kind words about Tyler. I knew him at school, and he was everything you said he was. He is missed by his friends. Thank you.
You are more than welcome Mikey and thank you for writing in. I feel honored to have gotten to “know” Tyler. Please feel free to pass the tribute on to others who knew Tyler as well.