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Annibel

Posted by Mary Barber on July 12, 2002 at 20:57:54

I really miss Ann today. I have missed her and thought about her almost every day, but today it hit me right in the heart. I was working on a trade with some people and there was a spot in the action that she normally would have been involved in. It came back to me how much I miss her. She was smart, graceful, innovative and brave in her trading style. My admiration for her had no limits. We quickly became friends.

The first time I ever heard from Ann was about eight or nine years ago. She called up with her Midwest accent (takes one to know one) and asked if I "still had those bonds" and could she have them. I didn't know her from Adam and asked her "are you sure you want 10 MILLION, not 10 THOUSAND dollars worth?" She firmly told me to hurry up or she was going to miss the bonds and, yes, she did want 10 million. She later called me back and introduced herself and asked if I would cover her for mortgages. I said I would be happy to, but that I had just started and didn't know much, maybe she would prefer more knowledgeable coverage. She laughed and said she knew less than I did, it was her first day! Over the years, Ann became one of my best customers, not just for one or two of those years, but almost every year.

I started trying to arrange to see her as often as I could as the various outings, opting not to go if she wasn't there. It usually amounted to me chasing her all over the place, because everyone in the business had the same plan. They all wanted to be with Ann. She made it an event. She was beautiful, men loved her, but she kept them in their place so effortlessly, only the chosen few ever got through. She made you feel needed and wanted in spite of all of the attention she got; she once scolded me for going on vacation and not leaving my cell number with her. This from the girl that must have lost her cell phone 100 times! She would always pack like three events into one evening. . . 5pm drinks with one group; 7:30 dinner with another; meeting up at a dance club with a third. She usually tried to drag everyone she met up with on the way along with her, kind of let down if you couldn't make it to the end. Then she would hop out of bed the next AM and be her beautiful sweet self all over again. I roomed with her for Memphis in May (of course she forgot to make a reservation!) and I got about four more hours of sleep than she did and she still outplayed me in golf and outshined me in personality the next day. It was her birthday that trip and she received many calls; one from you, Gary. I just remembered how sweet she sounded when she said "Oh, Dad!" about something you said to her. She really loved her family and talked about you a lot! In the hotel, for her birthday, She received two huge bouquets of flowers! This when she was traveling!

Ann and I talked pretty much daily, sometimes many times a day because it was hard to keep her on the telephone after she went to Cantor. I think her thoughts for that place were mixed; she really loved the people, but the work was competitive and sometimes people were not at their best. I know she was, though. She was really upset one time because she said a customer that she was covering yelled at her for not buying some bonds that she had showed them and they traded away before she could buy them. She wasn't sure the level was right and she was trying to protect the customer. She was really upset, but of course we know she did the right thing. In my opinion, she always did the right thing, she had the biggest heart I know; loyal, loving, generous. She would have been my friend for life.

Eric, Gary and Jenette, I will never forget her kindness to me.

Mary Barber