Remembering Jennifer Tino
Jennifer was the daughter of Joan and Savatore Tino, and had two brothers, Jeffrey & Salvatore Jr., as well as an older sister Pam. She was an aunt. A friend. A graduate of Marymount University who had just passed her CPA exam, a relentless prankster who studied abroad and tutored others, a star athlete and devoutly religious young woman with a loving, gentle spirit and amazing faith in God. A snow-loving, "authentic Italian", girlfriend also knew the importance of knowing linguine from spaghetti.
Petite in stature, at five foot two inches, but larger than life nonetheless, Jen was a strong person with an uncommon fortitude and a singular sense of self. Her friend Tracey Barmore says: "Jen didn’t care about what was popular. She cared about what was right. If the actions of the multitude defied any element of Jens convictions she had absolutely no qualms about standing alone. I respected and admired that and consequently she never stood alone. In fact, at only 5’2” Jen stood taller than anyone else I have ever known. It was that confidence and strength of character that inspired me to walk with her and not among the multitude." (Read more comments from Tracey and others who knew and loved Jen here: http://memorial.mmc.com/pgBio.asp?ID=274 .)
This little dynamo rocked it out on the basketball court, the soccer field, and the softball diamond throughout her junior and high school years. At Marymount University, Jen majored in Accounting and continued on with her athletic interests, playing basketball and soccer here as well, in addition to taking on the responsibility of helping to tutor others. Jen received the GEICO Achievement scholarship per her academic excellence and involvement at Marymount; one of her professors, Charles Miller, stated that she was also a warm and caring indivitual who "epitomized the ideal of a Marymount education".
None of her friends or family fails to refer to her choice sense of humor. Jen is cited as having had a particularly dry wit and being a relentless practical joker and was generally known as The Life Of College Hall. Proud of her heritage, Jen referred to herself as an "Authentic Italian", bringing scads of her mom's pasta dishes and cookies from NYC's Italian markets back to campus after visiting home. She would then grill her "less authentic" Italian roommate, Mary Cardarelli, about the proper name for each item. You'd never call her a quitter.
Jen was a kind and considerate soul, nurturing and tender and protective and loving. During a semest spent abroad studying in London, Jen became the self-appointed "Mom" of the bunch, helping others struggling with homesickness and generally acting as the cohesive element of her group. A woman of tremendous faith, Jen was known to have a deeply spiritual side which helped sustain her, and others, throughout.
It was her ambition to become a CPA and head for Wall Street. Girlfriend was one determined cookie. Following her 1994 graduation from Marymount, she sent out six hundred job applications and resumes. Six hundred! She was snapped up by the U.S. Navy, where she was stationed in California.
Later, she would come to work for Marsh & McLellan. Here, Jen acted as a financial analyst & project accountant for Marsh's Technology Unit. She earned her CPA in the summer of 2001 and had her sights set on enrolling in an MBA program. Her manager, Dan Rubenstein called her "an ideal employee, a great person, motivated but easy to work with. If you gave her a difficult assignment, she never complained, but would come back a week later with the job done.”
At THIS SITE , I found a story about something that happened that horrible day. I'm going to recount it here, word for word, in case the link isn't working or in case you don't feel like navigating away from this page to read about it.
I was at my desk on the 41st floor of 60 Wall Street, the J.P. Morgan building, when the Trade Center was attacked. Thousands of pieces of paper floated across downtown and one of them came to rest right outside my window; it was a buckslip with Jennifer Tino's name on it. I quickly wrote down her name and phone number in the hope against hope that she would somehow survive. A few seconds later, the buckslip slipped from the window and blew away. When I called Jennifer's number a few days later, I learned that she had been killed in the attack. While I never met her, I think of this chance interaction often, and am deeply saddened that she died before her time, killed by the face of evil. -Benjamin Lopata, 9/11/2002 8:30:45 AM
In the end, defying all odds, our girl found her way to Wall Street and made herself known. I am not sure I'd believe it if it were anyone else. But knowing her - if I can SAY I know her, after this - in even this most limited way - I think if anyone could achieve it, it'd be Jennifer.
A scholarship in her name has been established, which is lovely. But it is not the only way her legacy will endure. Family and friends who treasure memories of Jennifer, who hold momentos from her, who preserve letters she wrote to them, who see her influence live on in her nieces and nephews, will see to it that Jennifer remains a vital part of life as they know it.
She will never be forgotten, she will always be missed, and she will always be the factor that pushes them on to greater heights, to remember what matters, and to live fully.
posted by Karyn at 7:58 PM
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