In Memorium: James Dermot Dickey

Everyone said it was such a beautiful fall day. The city that never sleeps was just stretching to a new day. Joe drove in to the office like he did everyday. I can imagine that he thought it was a great day to get into Cantor, Fitzgerald and get some work done. A beautiful fall day in September, in New York. His wife Irene and his children Joseph and Elizabeth probably thought it was a great day as well . No one but a handful of terrorists knew what was coming that day.

I didn't know Joe Dickey, don't even know if he would approve of me calling him Joe. He was my age and seemed a great family man. He worked with numbers, financial things thay I would never understand. But I understand how he felt about his family, and playing golf with his wife. It seems to me that we lost a wonderful man that day. Someone who touched a lot of lives with his smile, knowledge and wit.

From a memorial at the New York Times:

He was an eternal optimist and had an unforgettable passion for life. But Joe always measured his own success on how good he was to his family. And he was an exceptional husband and father. He taught them to embrace life, take on new challenges and to love the outdoors as much as he did. In their early years together, Joe introduced Irene to the city and took her on long strolls in Central Park. On Fire Island, Joe taught his children how to swim out past the break, how to stay on top and out in front of the ocean's barrels. He coached his children's basketball teams, sat proudly on the sidelines at Joseph's crew regattas, and never missed an opportunity to play the back nine with Elizabeth.

Joe attended Binghamton where he earned an MBA '76. This is what the Alumni Memorial Page said about Joe:

Joseph Dermot Dickey, Jr., MBA '76, was a managing director in the interest rate swaps department of Cantor Fitzgerald. He worked on the 105th floor of Tower 1 at the World Trade Center, directly above where the first plane hit. He is survived by his wife, Irene, children, Joseph and Elizabeth, and brothers, William and Walter. "Joe always measured his own success on how good he was to his family," reads his obituary in the New York Times. ". . . He taught them to embrace life, take on new challenges and to love the outdoors as much as he did."

He taught them to embrace life. Ironic, and yet a reflection of a man who was devoted to life and all that it can bring. This brief memorial from inmemorium online says so much.

Joseph Dermot Dickey Jr. grew up with two older brothers in the Bronx, and the three siblings became more competitive the older they got. They sparred in tennis, basketball, volleyball and golf. Mr. Dickey, 50, who had settled down in Manhasset, was not only the best basketball player, his oldest brother admits, but was probably also the best liked of the three.

"He was extremely sociable," said Bill Dickey, 58. "Frankly, he was more easygoing and personable than me or my brother."

A managing director with Cantor Fitzgerald, Joe Dickey was also successful on Wall Street. But in his tight-knit Irish-American family, attributes as a husband and father Ð in Joe Dickey's case to his wife, Irene, son Joseph, 17, and daughter Liz, 15 Ð were "the mark by which we judge each other," Bill Dickey said.

His family's verdict was that Joe Dickey was exceptional on both counts, especially with the children. The last big family gathering, which also drew Walter, 55, the middle brother, was at the wedding of Bill Dickey's daughter last August in Adare Manor, Ireland. "We had a great time, all of us," Bill Dickey said. "We spent a lot of time playing golf."

Joseph will be missed, is missed... by his wife and his children and friends family. And some of us who now will never have a chance to meet him, and the others who died that day, we miss him as well. Joe was an American, a husband, a father, a brother, a son and a friend.

Rest in Peace Joe.

This memorial is oe of the 2,996 Memorial project.